


The Eighth Horcrux

by TrisPrior111



Category: Harry Potter - Fandom, Mattex - Fandom
Genre: AU, F/M, Save our Mattex
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-02-04
Updated: 2015-08-10
Packaged: 2018-03-10 11:00:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 26,418
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3287816
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TrisPrior111/pseuds/TrisPrior111
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This is an AU where the traditional Mattex story is set in the Harry Potter world. It is a play off of how Alex was married to Ralph Fiennes and he played Voldemort in the Harry Potter movies. There have been some changes made to Alex's life, but they will all be explained. This is all I'm going to say,  because I don't want to give away any plot points.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Beginning

**Author's Note:**

> This is both my first Mattex and my first Harry Potter fic, so I hope it turns out okay! Please keep in mind that this story is actually set in the wizarding world, so the Harry Potter books and movies don't exist. It takes place several years after the war against Voldemort, and it is an AU in the sense that, as I said in the summary, several large changes have been made to Alex's life, and also that the major death eaters such as Bellatrix are still alive. I don't own any of the Harry Potter characters and I do not know, nor do I pretend to know all of the real people in this story. I also want to encourage everyone to keep writing Mattex! Reading fic about them is literally what has gotten me through this year of school. I am so heartbroken when I look up a story that I used to love and it no longer exists. No, I don't think it would be super cool if Alex found these stories, but what people need to understand is that they were taking that gamble when they first posted the fics, and it isn't fair to the readers when they take their stories off of the Archive. Anyway, this chapter is just setting the scene so hope you enjoy!
> 
> This fanfiction is dedicated to my best friend Nicole. She helped me with a lot of the Harry Potter stuff and some of the writing. She has been a great help and she is a much better writer than I can ever hope to be. Love you! <3

Alex Kingston was one of the brightest, happiest, bubbliest people Matt Smith had ever known; she was always flirting with him and laughing at his jokes and every day on set. No matter how badly his day was going, he could always count on seeing her smiling face. That smile that lit up the whole room; the one that had made him fall in love with her as soon as they had locked eyes. And the smile that made him trip over things and literally fall at her feet sometimes multiple times a day. But that was beside the point. The point was she was one of the happiest people he had ever known, so when she started to seem distant a few weeks into shooting the new season of Who, he knew right away that something was wrong. He thought he might have been imagining it at first. When he went over to ask her if she was ok, the look that had been in her eyes completely vanished and the usual smile was back on her face. But as the week wore on, the smile didn’t reach her eyes. Alex was a bloody good actress, but she wasn't fooling him.  
It was the end of the week and Matt was determined to figure out what was wrong. He got to set early in the hopes that he could talk to her before they started shooting. Moffat and the crew were already busy setting up for the day. He walked into the break room and found Karen in one of the fluffy armchairs hunched over her iPhone with a Starbucks coffee cup in her other hand. 

"Hey, Kaz," Matt greeted her.

"Hey," she replied, without looking up.

"Have you seen the Kingston this morning?"

"Yeah, she went that way," Karen waved her hand to the left, in the direction of the read-through rooms. 

"Thanks," Matt turned to go. 

"Are you going to confess your undying love?" Karen teased. 

Matt rolled his eyes. Karen had figured out his crush on Alex ages ago, and still proceeded to make fun of him about it. 

"Goodbye, Kaz," Matt said. 

He made his way through the dimly lit hallway until he found a door that was slightly ajar. He leaned his head inside, searching for any sign of Alex. It took a moment for his eyes to adjust to the darkness, but when they did he could make out her form curled up in the corner behind the long mahogany table. 

"Kingston?" he said softly. He turned on the light and saw her eyes open. 

"Matt," she said, sitting up abruptly. Her golden curls were in a halo of adorable disarray as she stood up and rubbed her eyes. 

"Are you alright?" 

"Oh, yeah I'm fine," she waved her hand dismissively. "I was just tired."

She looked tired. No, she looked exhausted. There were dark rings under her eyes and her normally bright green eyes lacked their usual sparkle. It looked as if it caused her excruciating pain to move as she walked over to him. 

"Are you sure?" he asked quietly. "You don't seem to be yourself lately."

"I'm fine, darling," she said airily. "You don't need to worry about me." 

He had planned to do everything he could to get the truth out of her, but now the words he had planned to say died in his throat. She looked completely like herself again. Maybe he really was imagining things after all?

"Did I wake you up?" he asked. 

"No, no, it's fine. I was just dozing. I needed to get to set soon anyway." 

"Ok," he hesitated. "You know that if something's wrong you can talk to me, right?"

Just for a split second, he saw her mask come down. The mask that she always wore when facing the world. Just for a split second, he caught a glimpse of her true self when she looked up at him then, their eyes meeting. She looked so exposed, so...vulnerable. But as soon as that look had come, it was gone. And she was waving him off again, telling him that he needed to stop worrying about her and that nothing was wrong.

The next day, he went to look for her and found her in the same room asleep in the corner again. 

This time, she didn't even move when he turned on the light. 

"Kingston," he whispered, touching her arm, " you need to wake up. It's time to go to set."

She stirred slightly and opened her eyes, looking around the room disoriented. 

"What are you doing here?" she asked, her voice thick with sleep. 

"Just checking on you," he smiled. "I got us breakfast." 

He gestured to the two cups of coffee and the bag of pastries he had placed on the table when he came in. 

"Matt, you didn't have to do that!" she protested as he helped her up. 

He just continued smiling and they sat down at the table to eat. They didn't talk for a while; just sat in comfortable silence. He reached across the table and covered her hand with his. 

"Why are you so tired? Is something going on?" 

She shifted uncomfortably. "No, nothing's going on darling. I was just up late reading and I lost track of time. Really, you need to stop worrying about me."

"I can't, Alex. It seems like there's something wrong and you won't tell me what it is."  
"Matt," she said firmly, getting up and throwing her coffee cup away. "There is nothing wrong with me." 

"Alright," he said softly as he got up as well. 

When he looked over at her, she was pressing her fingers to her temples and cringing in pain.   
"Alex, are you ok?" he asked. 

"No," she whispered weakly, shaking her head. "No, this can't be happening." 

“Should I get some help?”

“No! No, please don’t, Matt,” her eyes were wide with terror.

Tears were brimming in her eyes and threatening to spill over the edge. Matt rushed over to her, but no sooner had he reached her than she collapsed into his arms, unconscious.

“Alex!” he cried in shock, kneeling down and pulling her into his lap to support her. She writhed and screamed out in pain; it looked as though she was having a horrific nightmare. He desperately wanted to go get Steven, or, better yet, an ambulance. He thought about it, but he was hesitant because of the terrified look he had seen in her eyes when he asked her if he should get help. He was just thinking that to hell with that, she looked like she could be dying, when suddenly her eyes snapped open and she sat up.

“Oh, thank God,” he breathed out a sigh of relief. “Alex, you bloody scared me. What just happened to you?”

Tears were streaming silently down her face.

“No,” she sobbed, putting her face in her hands. “No, no, it’s all my fault! Oh God, it’s all my fault!”

She sobbed harder and Matt tentatively put his arm around her shoulders.

“What’s your fault, Alex? What happened?”

She just pulled away from him and sat down in another chair.

“Matt, please,” she whispered. “Please forget what you just saw.”

“Alex, no,” he said sternly. “You have to tell me what’s going on. And don’t say nothing, because that, Alex, that wasn’t nothing.You scared me half to death.”

She took a breath to reply, but just then Steven poked his head into the room and called, “Matt? Alex? Time to go to set!”

Alex turned away so he couldn’t see her face and hastily dabbed at her eyes with a tissue from her purse. Then they both got up and Alex looked at him with him with wide, fearful eyes. An unspoken promise went between them that he would keep her secret as he just nodded, reaching out to take her hand and squeezing it firmly.

********

Matt had known for a while that something was wrong, but now he was really worried. He decided to go to her flat later that evening to make her tell him the truth. Maybe if they weren’t on set she would tell him. He just didn’t understand why she didn’t feel comfortable talking to him about what was going on. They had become extremely close while filming Who, and he thought that they had the kind of friendship where they could tell each other anything. Well, almost anything. He could never confess his feelings for her, because then their friendship would be ruined.

When he got to her flat, he raised his hand to knock on the door and froze with his fist in midair, hearing the unmistakable sounds of sobbing from inside. He didn’t know what to do. He didn’t cry very often, but when he did he usually wanted to be left alone. But with what had happened that morning, he felt that he needed to help her and she was obviously upset. Taking a deep breath, he knocked softly on the door. The sobbing continued without pause, so he quietly opened the door. She was sitting on the couch in jeans and an oversized sweatshirt, her hair creating a curtain around her face as she hid her head in her hands and cried. He sat down beside her and gently placed his hand on her arm. He realized that he was crossing a boundary. Yes, they were friends, but he had never seen her cry, save for that morning. This was his chance to show her that he would always be there, no matter what.

 

Her head jerked up in shock to see him there. Her eyes were red and there was mascara running in inky rivulets down her cheeks. She quickly wiped her eyes with her sleeve and attempted to smile.

“Alex…” he murmured.

“I’m fine,” she said quickly.

He took both of her hands. “Alex, you can’t play this game with me anymore. I know that you’re not ok. You need to get help, even if you won’t tell me.”

She shook her head furiously, new tears welling up in her eyes. “You don’t understand.”

“Of course I don’t understand, Alex, because you won’t tell me anything!” 

"You can't do anything to help me,” she said in a low voice.

“Let me try.”

“I can’t, Matt,” she whispered, her tears beginning to fall again. “I-I think you should go.”

“No,” he said simply. “I can’t leave you like this.”

“Matt,” she said through clenched teeth. “You have to.”

She stood up abruptly and he mirrored her. He couldn’t let this go on. She had to tell him the truth.

“Alex,” he said, “there is no way that I am going to walk out this door and leave you here, when you are obviously hurting. I can’t do that.”

“Matt, please! I can’t tell you anything please just go,” her voice cracked as she began to sob again, backing away from him.

He reached out and grabbed her left forearm, trying to bring her towards him. She gasped in pain and yanked her arm away, cradling it to her chest.

“Oh my gosh Alex did I hurt you?” he cried as she sank back down on the couch, still holding her arm and wincing. He tried to roll up the sleeve of her sweatshirt to look at her arm but she pulled it away from him, her eyes wide with fear. 

"No," she shook her head. "You didn't, I promise."

"Alex..." his breath hitched when the thought came to him. "Did someone else?"

She bit her bottom lip and her eyes teared up again. 

"It's not what you think," she said weakly. 

"I didn't even know you were seeing someone."

"I'm not," she responded. "I swear, Matt."

"Who was it?" he demanded, his voice suddenly angry. "Just tell me and I'll go make sure they never come near you again." 

Her eyes searched his. 

"You-you would do that?"

"Alex, of course I would!"

"But...why?"

"Because I care about you! Is that so hard to believe?"

She started crying again. "Matt, please go. Now. Please just forget about this. About me. About everything. I'm not worth it. Please, just go." 

"Did you just say you're not worth it?"

"Matt, please-"

"No, Alex...how could you think that?"

"Because it's true."

"No it isn't. Alex, you're funny and talented and caring and beautiful and any man would be crazy not to fight for you."

"You don't even know me."

That hit him like a punch in the gut, because he realized that she was right; he didn't know her, not really. He thought he did-he knew her coffee order at Starbucks and her favorite boutique downtown and how dedicated she was to her daughter and the way she bit her bottom lip when she was thinking, but he don't know anything about her past. She had never told him and he had never asked, assuming that it was private and she didn't want to talk about it. 

"I've done awful things, Matt," she whispered. 

"Like what? Alex, you know you can tell me anything."

"You wouldn't even understand. I just-" she sighed, exasperated. "I can't tell you anything without telling you all of it." 

"Try me, Alex. I want to know. I want to help you," he looked into her deep green eyes, silently begging her to tell him what was wrong. Couldn't she see that he would be willing to help her in any way possible? That he would do anything for her, to see her happy? That it was killing him to see her like this, in pain and closing herself off?

"Why can't you tell me?" he asked gently.

She bit her lip again, tears falling down her cheeks. 

"Matt..." she worked her lip harder between her teeth. "I can't tell you because Salome will get hurt."

It took a moment for him to piece it together. 

"Alex," he gasped. "Is someone threatening you?"

She just bit her lip more fiercely and tears began rushing down her cheeks. 

"Alex, no," he breathed. "I can't let this happen to you."

"Matt, I told you," she said between sobs,"there’s nothing you can do. Don’t worry about me."

"I can't help it," he took her hand and held it firmly. 

"You can't tell anyone about this, okay? Not Karen or Arthur or anyone else."

"Okay," he said softly. "Is there anything I can do? Anything at all?"

She started to shake her head, and then hesitated.

“What is it?” he reached out and tucked a curl behind her ear. “You know I’ll do anything.”

“Can you…” she paused, not meeting his gaze. “Can you stay here tonight?”

She didn’t even leave him enough time to respond before quickly saying, “Only if you want to. I mean, I know you probably have a million things you could be doing right now that-”

“Alex,” he cut her off gently. “I don’t mind.”

She looked up at him. “Are you sure it isn’t any trouble?”

“None at all.”

He hesitated for a moment, and then pulled her into his arms. He expected her to stiffen or push him away, but instead she rested her head on his chest and closed her eyes.

“Thank you,” she whispered.

“Of course,” he pressed his lips to her forehead.

He stroked her hair and held her tightly until she fell asleep. He had often wondered what it would be like to hold Alex in his arms, and he had always thought that he would feel overjoyed. But now, he was just terrified of what was happening to her, and feeling incredibly useless because he couldn’t do anything to stop it.


	2. No Escape

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> How Lord Voldemort returned...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello wonderful, amazing readers! I just want to thank you so much for taking the time to read this fic. It is a lot of fun for me to write, and I hope that you enjoy reading it as well. This chapter will most likely explain some questions you might have had from the first chapter, but will probably also raise many more. The full story of Alex's past will be in chapter 4, so if you still have questions after that, feel free to ask but I probably won't answer them after this chapter because I don't want to give anything away. I neglected a lot of schoolwork and sleep to get this chapter posted so quickly, so don't expect such frequent updates in the future :) Happy reading!

One Week Earlier…

Bellatrix Lestrange paced the pearly white marble floor of Malfoy Manor, flanked by Lucius and Narcissa, in front of the large congregation of Death Eaters.They were in the Main Hall, which had a raised ceiling with glittering chandeliers dripping down from it like icicles, and smooth, windowless ebony walls. Her black silk robes swished around her ankles as she spun around to face them. 

"Welcome back, everyone," she grinned. "It's so good so see you all again." 

She paused to sigh contentedly and gaze out at the crowd. 

"I know some of you may be wondering how you got here," she continued. "And that is because of these."

She unrolled her sleeve to reveal the dark mark, the black ink of the skull and snake standing out against her pallid skin.

"Since our Lord has fallen, I am the leader for the time being. And I have performed magic on my Dark Mark that forces all of you to apparate to Malfoy Manor when I press it. Isn't it wonderful?" her lips stretched into another smile. 

"Now, of course I didn't bring you all here for fun," she said, as if she was talking to a group of kindergarteners. "We are going to be starting something very special today. But we need someone to help us. Alexandra, will you come forward please?"

All eyes in the room shifted to Alex, who was completely frozen, as if she wasn’t sure that she had heard correctly.

"Come forward, dear," Bellatrix beckoned her. "Yes, yes, that's it, don't be shy, darling."

Alex walked forward slowly, feeling the burning gaze of every Death Eater in the room. 

"Bellatrix, what's going on?" she whispered as she mounted the steps to where Bellatrix, Narcissa, and Lucius stood, although everyone in the room could hear her in the dead silence that had settled over the crowd.

"What am I doing here?"

"We need you, Alexandra."

"Need me for what? I am not a part of this anymore, Bellatrix. I thought I made that clear eleven years ago," Alex replied coldly. 

"Oh, but of course you are, Alexandra. You can never escape us, no matter how hard you try." 

“Why do you need me?” she asked through clenched teeth.

Bellatrix grinned again. “We’re bringing our Lord back.”

A collective gasp arose in the Hall and Alex’s eyes went wide with shock.

“How do you plan to do that?” she asked in a hoarse whisper.

“Well, that’s where you come in, of course,” Bellatrix purred.

“What have I got to do with this?” Alex demanded. “I refuse to help you! With any of this! Did you not understand me when I said I was leaving, Bellatrix? I meant it.”

She turned on her heel, attempting to disapparate, but found that she couldn’t.

 

Bellatrix snickered. “Do you really think that I would let you get away that easily, Alexandra? Did you think that I was foolish enough not to put up protective enchantments that prevented disapparition?”

Alex’s hand went automatically to her pocket, reaching for her wand, but Bellatrix just laughed again.

“Alexandra, let’s think this through. You are in a room full of people whom you betrayed, who will rush to my defense if you attempt to harm me. Do you really think this wise? Put the wand away, darling. It’s of no use to you now.”

“I am not going to do this,” Alex said in a low voice.

“You have no choice, Alexandra,” Bellatrix said, her voice icy. “As I said, you are in a room of people who detest you. If I were you, I would do as I was told.”

“What do you want from me, Bellatrix?”

“I told you, dear, you are going to help us bring our Lord back.”

“How? He’s dead! All of the Horcruxes have been destroyed!”

Bellatrix smiled, pausing to look out at everyone whose rapt attention she was holding, as if she was about to tell the greatest secret in the world.

“That's where you're wrong.Think about it, Alexandra,” Bellatrix drew out her name mockingly. 

“Think really, really hard. The night he committed his first murder was the night he lost his virginity," she paused to let a wicked grin spread over her face, "to you. Do you know how a Horcrux is created, Alexandra?"

“No…” Alex whispered in horror, realization dawning on her.

“Yes,” Bellatrix breathed. “You are the eighth Horcrux. He isn’t really dead while you’re still living.”

“Oh my God,” Alex brought her hand to cover her mouth. “No.”

Bellatrix threw her head back and let out a sharp cackle. 

"How do did you know this?" Alex asked quietly. 

"He told me."

"He told you?"

"He told me everything," Bellatrix ran her tongue over her teeth. "He trusted me. I think he always knew that you would betray him."

"Did he intentionally make me a Horcrux?"

"Of course he did. It was all a plan from the beginning. To lead everyone into believing that there were only seven, and Dumbledore and the Potter boy fell right into the trap. No one ever suspected that there was an eighth, but here you are."

Alex backed away from her slowly, her eyes pooling with tears. 

"Oh and before you get any bright ideas, Alexandra, you are forbidden from telling anyone in the wizarding world about this."

"What are you going to do?" Alex asked sarcastically. "Kill me?"

"No," Bellatrix giggled gleefully, "not kill you, Alexandra. But we could definitely harm..." she pretended to think, "what was her name again? Salome?"

"No!" Alex cried. "Please, I'll do anything you ask! Don't hurt her, please!"

"We won't hurt her, darling," Bellatrix grinned. "As long as you obey."

Alex swallowed hard. "Yes. Whatever you need."

"Well then, let's waste no time," Bellatrix declared, taking Alex's hand and leading her down the stairs. Lucius and Narcissa followed, and Dolohov and Yaxley got up from their seats to join the foursome around the steaming pot of green bubbling liquid in the middle of the room. 

Pettigrew hesitantly got up from his seat to join them, but Bellatrix shoved him back down with disdain. He cowered away from her. 

"Ladies and gentlemen, look at what we have before us!" Bellatrix proclaimed. "The potion to bring back our Lord!"

A cheer went up around the room. 

"Everyone, please rise," said Lucius. 

All of the Death Eaters stood up and gathered in a large circular mass around the group in the center of the room. 

"This will be no easy task," said Bellatrix. "It will take many nights of work, but it begins now!"  
A deafening cheer filled the hall. 

Once everyone had silenced, Bellatrix continued. 

"The potion is not complete without a piece of the Horcrux; we need part of our Lord's soul to bring him back when he has been completely defeated."

She pushed Alex forward and thrust her arm over the pot, grabbing a steel knife from the pocket of her robes. 

"Spill her blood!" someone yelled. 

"You thought you could escape us," Bellatrix crooned, stroking Alex's cheek. "You thought you could join the light side and never look back."

"Traitor!" someone else shouted. 

Alex tried to jerk away from Bellatrix's hand, but Lucius shoved her forward again. 

Bellatrix snickered. "But there is no escape. You will always be one of us, Alexandra and there is no way out. How will all of your goody-goody wizard friends feel about this? That you are the reason the Dark Lord is returning?"

"Bellatrix, please," Alex begged, tears thickening her voice. "Just do it and stop mocking me."

"Is this painful for you, Alexandra?" Bellatrix drawled. "Poor dear. Well, let's get on with it then!"

The tumultuous noise from the Death Eaters filled the Hall. 

"She betrayed us," Bellatrix hissed, "and now she will pay."

Bellatrix drove the knife into Alex's Dark Mark and watched gleefully as crimson liquid dripped down her arm, mingling with the steaming green potion in the cauldron. Alex gasped in pain, and Bellatrix cackled, flashing her crooked teeth. 

"Did that hurt?" she cooed. 

Alex just set her jaw and looked Bellatrix squarely in the eye.

"Evidently not enough," Bellatrix snarled, plunging the knife in again, deeper this time. 

Another cheer arose, drowning out Alex's cries of anguish, and Bellatrix began to lead everyone in dark chants as they circled around the center of the room. Alex was thrown back into the throng of people, and she screamed as Death Eaters shoved her and jeered at her, grabbing her arms with their cold hands and forcing her to move around the circle with them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading! Please, please, please comment and tell me what you think!!!!


	3. Salome

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alex goes to get Salome at Hogwarts.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! As always, thank you for reading. We are quickly approaching SAT/ACT season and I have to devote basically all of my free time to studying, so I am not going to be able to update very often. I will try to write while I'm on vacation next week and get Chapter 4 up by next Sunday, but I make no promises. Nothing much happens in this chapter, and I basically wrote it on my iPhone in between classes this week. But Chapter 4 is when everything will be explained!

Alex was sitting on the couch trying to concentrate on a book, but she kept reading the same paragraph over and over. She had told Steven that she had a family emergency and she needed the week off, and she had taken a train from Cardiff to London. It felt good to be in her proper flat again, instead of in the ones that were rented out for the Who cast, but she felt nowhere near at ease. Her thoughts kept drifting back to the awful nights when she found herself swept away from whatever she was doing and back at Malfoy Manor. She shuddered just thinking about the rhythm of the chants and the pounding of feet stomping on the polished floors and hot breath on her cheeks and Bellatrix smirking and laughing at her from the center of the room. And the one line Bellatrix had said kept spinning in her mind- “You will always be one of us, Alexandra.” Had she ever really escaped the Death Eaters? Or did she just like to think that she had? She was just as bad as they were now; it was like she never left. Alex was so deep in her thoughts that when she heard a knock on the door, she nearly jumped off of the couch in surprise.

She got up and opened the door, doing a double-take when she saw Matt standing there, with his fringe falling adorably over his face and a warm smile on his lips.

“Matt?” she cried. “What are you doing here?”

“Just checking on you, Kingston," he said, pulling her into a hug. She inhaled the familiar smell of his ocean cologne and hugged him back tightly. She didn’t understand why he cared so much about her. Of course, she would like to think it was because he returned her feelings that she had been harboring for him since the first day on set. But that was stupid. He could never feel the same way about her; she was completely broken and weak, and the reason that the entire world was in grave danger. He was just being a good friend.

She let him inside and they sat down on the couch.

“Matt, you really didn’t need to do this,” she said.

“It was no trouble,” he insisted. “I want to be here with you.”

He smiled and covered her hand with his. Why did he have to be so perfect? Why did he make it impossible for her to tell him to go?

“Thank you,” she said softly.

They sat in silence for a few moments, and then he got up to make them tea. 

"Are you hungry?" he asked, once they had settled back in on the couch with their mugs.

"Yeah, a little, but you are not going to make dinner," she said firmly. 

He put his hands up, "Alright, fine, we'll order something in. Pizza? Chinese?"

"Whatever suits you, darling. Either sounds fine."

"Alright," he pondered. "Pizza, then."

They placed the order and watched a romantic comedy on TV while they waited. They ate while the movie was ending, and then Matt reached for the remote and turned it off. 

"Alex," he said quietly. "Is everything okay?"

"You know I can't answer that," she sighed. "Can't we talk about something else?"

"Alex, look at me," he pleaded. "Please just at least let me know that you're going to be alright when this is all over."

"I don't know," she whispered. "I'm sorry, but I don't know."

"There has to be something I can do to fix this."

"Matt, I know you don't want to hear this, but believe me, there isn't," she said dryly. 

He looked at her with sad eyes. "You're getting hurt. And I can't do anything?"

"The only thing you can do is stay out of it."

He sighed and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. Her mind was spinning. She may have already told him too much. At the last ritual, Bellatrix had told her that her Dark Mark would tell her if Alex told anyone about Voldemort's return. What if Bellatrix already knew Matt was aware that something was going on? What if Salome was in danger? With that thought in mind, Alex told Matt that she would be right back, and went to her room, sitting down at her desk and setting up a piece of parchment, a quill, and a pot of ink. 

She wrote "Salome- Tell Professor Flitwick that there has been a family emergency and that you must return home immediately. Pack all of your things and meet me outside the front gate. -Mum"

She rolled up the parchment and opened the golden cage that rested on her dresser, and a shimmering white owl flittered out, landing on the desk. Alex rolled up the parchment and addressed it, and then stuck it under the bird’s clawed feet.

“Take this to Salome, Opal,” she said, feeding the owl a treat and opening the window. 

She watched as Opal flew off into the distance, and then grabbed her wand from the nightstand and took a deep breath, walking back out to the living room. She knew that it wouldn’t take long for Opal to get to Hogwarts, so she would have to leave quickly. She didn’t want to know what would happen if Matt realized that she had just suddenly disappeared, so she did what she knew she had to do.

“Imperio,” she said softly, pointing her wand at him and registering the look of surprise on his face for an instant before it went slack.  
“Stay on the couch and go to sleep,” she told him, and his eyes closed.

She bit her lip as she turned away. She was disgusted with herself for putting the Imperius curse on a Muggle, doing any sort of magic on a Muggle, especially him, but she knew that it had to be done.

********  
“We have so much Charms homework tonight!” Violet complained, setting her down her quill pen and shaking out her hand.

“I know!” Aria agreed. “Like, does he think that we don’t have any other classes?”

“I haven’t even started that,” Coral muttered. “I’ve been doing Transfiguration all evening. I feel like I haven’t had a break all day; I was still trying to finish yesterday’s Divination homework at lunch. Speaking of lunch, where were you, Salome?”

“Oh, Professor Demue wanted to see me after Potions about my essay,” she said.

Coral shuddered. “She gives me the creeps. What did she say about it?”

“I need to redo it,” Salome rolled her eyes.

“She didn’t like mine either,” Aria piped up. “She said I did it wrong, even though I followed the guide she gave us.”

“Whatever,” Violet said. “I am so done with that class, honestly-”

She was cut off when there was a sudden crash at the window of the Ravenclaw dormitory, startling the four first-years.

“Opal!” Salome cried, rushing over to the window to open it. The owl fluttered inside and perched on the table they were using.

“Is she hurt?” Coral asked.

“No, it doesn’t look like it,” Salome said as she examined the bird. "Just clumsy!"

"What do you have for me?" Salome inquired, slipping the thick, cream colored parchment out from Opal's feet. 

She unrolled it and her hand flew to her mouth.

"What is it?" Violet asked. "Is everything okay?"

"Who's it from?" 

"My mum," Salome replied worriedly. "She said that there was a family emergency and I have to go home."

She gathered her books and her quill and turned to go. 

"I hope everyone's alright," Aria told her. 

"Send us an owl!" Coral called. 

Salome hurriedly shoved her robes, textbooks, and spare quills into her trunk and grabbed the silver barred cage that contained her ebony owl, Diamond. She showed the note to Professor Flitwick, and then quickly made her way down the many flights of marble staircases to the exit. She sprinted down the stone pathway, hauling her trunk behind her and her chestnut curls flying in the crisp wind.

She pushed the gate open and immediately Alex came rushing towards her from where she had been waiting.

“Mum!” Salome cried, leaping in to her arms. “What’s wrong? What happened?”

Alex placed her hands on Salome’s shoulders and looked her squarely in the eye. “It’s your father.”

It took a moment, but realization dawned on her and Salome clapped a hand over her mouth.

“Oh my God, Mum, no! I have to go back and warn them!”

“No, darling I’m sorry but you can’t,” Alex grabbed her arm as she turned to run back inside the gate.

"Why?" Salome demanded. "They could help us!"

"I'll explain later," Alex promised, pulling her daughter close again. "I'm just so glad you're safe."

“You ready?” Alex asked, letting her go. Salome nodded and Alex took her hand, and together they vanished into the misty night air.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you again! I would really appreciate it if you commented because I want to know what you think!!


	4. The Truth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alex finally tells Matt about her past.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay for me! I wrote this chapter while I was on vacation and got it up by the time I said I would! This chapter should explain almost everything, so please feel free to post questions if something doesn't make sense. Hope you enjoy reading!

Once Alex and Salome had arrived in Salome's bedroom, Alex explained everything about Bellatrix and the dark rituals to her, leaving out the part about the threat. She knew that she was taking a risk, but Salome had to know. And she was home safely now. 

"So why couldn't I have gone back and warned the staff at Hogwarts? Mum, they could help us fight him!"

"Oh darling, I know. But we can't tell them just yet. We need to figure things out first."

Alex knew she was avoiding the question, but she didn't want her daughter to know the real reason because it would only scare her. 

"But-"

"No buts" Alex held up her hand. "It's time for you to get some sleep, okay?"

"Okay," Salome replied grudgingly, climbing into bed. 

Just then, they heard footsteps approaching the door. Matt walked in and Salome's face lit up when she saw him.

"Matty!" she cried, jumping out of bed. 

"Hey, poppet!" he greeted her, grinning as he picked her up and swung her around.

Alex watched in amusement, swallowing the guilt that she still felt for what she had done to him earlier. 

"How did you get here?" Matt asked as he ruffled Salome's hair and set her down. 

"Mum came and got me at school because-"

"It's time for you to go to bed now," Alex interrupted, folding back the covers on Salome's bed. 

"But Matty's here!" she protested. 

"Yes, and you can spend time together tomorrow, alright?" 

Salome got into bed again, and Alex tucked the covers around her. 

"I love you so much," she whispered, kissing her forehead. 

"I love you too, Mum," she smiled. 

Matt blew her a kiss. Alex turned off the light and closed the door, leading Matt back out to the living room. 

As she was walking, Alex suddenly felt the all too familiar splitting pain in her head. 

"No," she whispered, clutching her head in her hands. The pain exploded and the last things she was aware of Matt's arms around her and his panicked voice before she blacked out. 

"Alexandra," she heard the unsettling cold voice before she saw its owner. 

Then her eyes slowly began to focus and the source of the voice became clear. She shuddered as she saw the face that haunted her nightmares; the pale skin stretched over a nonexistent nose, the piercing gaze, and the sinister smile all belonging to none other than Lord Voldemort. 

"Alexandra," he repeated. "You told our daughter of my return."

"I had to! She's your child, although that's never meant anything to you. She has a right to know!"

"That doesn't matter," he sneered. "You disregarded orders."

He stepped forward and wrapped icy fingers around her neck. 

She gasped for air and tried to jerk away from him, but his grip only tightened. 

"If either of you tell any wizarding folk about me, Salome will be harmed, mark my words."

"She's your daughter!" Alex choked as he let her go. 

"That is no concern of mine!" he bellowed. "You obey me or she will be hurt and that is final!"

She held back tears as she backed away, willing herself to wake up. 

"Don't be foolish, Alexandra," he said in a low voice, and then everything around her disappeared. 

Before she opened her eyes, she could feel fingers stroking her hair and warmth surrounding her. 

She opened her eyes into Matt's concerned gaze. His fingers were threaded through her curls and she was wrapped in a blanket. 

"Oh Alex, thank God! You had me so worried," he pulled her to his chest and buried his face in her hair. "Are you alright?" 

"I'm fine," she whispered. "I'm fine now." 

“What just happened? Is there anything I can do to make it go away?”

She shook her head, pulling away from him. 

“I’m sorry, there’s just no way I can-” she stopped speaking abruptly when she realized something important.

“Oh my God,” she whispered incredulously, clapping her hand over her mouth.

“What? What is it?”

She went over what Bellatrix and Voldemort had told her. If she told any wizarding folk about Voldemort’s return, Salome would be harmed. Any wizarding folk. As in wizards. Not Muggles.

“I can tell you!” she said in disbelief. “I can’t believe I just realized that.”

“You can tell me what’s going on?” Matt inquired hesitantly.

She nodded. “But I doubt you’re even going to believe me.”

“Alex-”

“And when I’m through telling you, you’re going to hate me,” she said miserably.

“I could never hate you,” he said softly, taking her hands and looking her in the eyes.

“We’ll see about that,” she chuckled dryly.

“Alex, I want to know. I want to help you. You can tell me anything.”

She put her face in her hands, shaking her head.

“I promise not to judge you. How’s that?”

“That’s impossible, darling,” she sighed. “I’ll tell you; you deserve to know the truth about me. But please know that I won’t blame you if you absolutely detest me and never want to speak to me again.”

“Alex, I would never-”

She held up her hand. “Don’t make any promises. I’ll be right back.”

And she hurried back to her bedroom to retrieve her wand, her mind swirling with thoughts. She was really doing this. She was going to tell the only person in the world that cared about her what an awful person she really was. But he deserved the truth, even if he would hate her for it. 

She came back out to the living room and sat down next to him, taking a deep breath.

“Do you believe in magic?”

His brow furrowed and he cocked his head. Obviously, those were not the words he had expected to come out of her mouth.

“Um, no I can’t say that I do,” he said after a moment. “Why?”

“Because you have to in order to understand what I’m about to tell you.”

His confused look only deepened. She pulled her wand from her pocket and pointed at an empty tea mug on the counter.

“Wingardium Leviosa,” she said, and the mug lifted into the air.

Matt’s mouth fell open. He immediately jumped up from the couch and ran over to the counter, waving his hand above and below the mug.

“It’s not a trick darling, I promise,” she said amusedly.

“But how-” he sputtered.

“Magic,” she winked.

He stood there with his mouth still open, completely speechless.

“Still don’t believe me?” she smirked, walking over and pointing her wand at the mug once more.

“Aguamenti,” she said, and the mug filled with water.

“How did you do that?” he demanded.

“I already told you,” she said calmly. “Magic.”

“No,” he shook his head, as if trying to clear it. “This is...something you planned. There had to have been-”

“How could water have gotten into that mug?”

He was silent.

“So what does this mean?” he asked after a moment.

“Let’s sit down,” she suggested.

Once they were situated on the couch again, she took a deep breath and looked up at him.

“I know this is a lot to take in, but I promise this is real. If you need more proof I can give it to you, but...do you believe me?”

“Yes...I guess I do,” he said. “It’s just hard to comprehend. I mean, how on earth did you do that?”

“I’m going to explain that to you,” she said. “I’m going to explain everything. There are...a lot of things you don’t know about me.”

“Okay, I’m ready,” he said a moment later. “I’m listening.”

“There is a whole world that you don’t see,” she began. “A world of wizardry.”

“You mean...there are more people who can do what you just did?” he asked incredulously.

“Yes,” she smiled at his disbelief. “Many more.”

“If I pick up that wand, could I do it too?”

She shook her head. “That’s not how it works. I’m a witch; I have magical blood. You’re a human, or a Muggle, as we say in wizarding terms.”

“So how does the world work?”

She went on to explain the basics of wizarding and the politics and history. Then she hesitated. 

“What is it?” he asked. “After what you just told me, I think I can handle pretty much anything.”

“There are dark wizards,” she said quietly. “Ones that don’t do good in the world, that only seek to destroy. They want to make the world miserable for everyone who isn’t a pureblood, or fully wizard.”

She looked up from her hands in her lap to meet his eyes. “And I was one of them.”

“Alex…”

She held up her hand, tears welling in her eyes. “Please, just let me continue. You need to know everything.”

He nodded.

“When all witches and wizards are 11, they start going to school at Hogwarts. There are four houses in the school- Gryffindor, the brave; Hufflepuff, the loyal; Ravenclaw, the intelligent; and Slytherin, the cunning. Each student gets sorted into one of the houses based on which virtues they have. I was put in Slytherin.”

She paused to collect herself, fighting back tears at the thought that she was about to lose the only person who cared about her.

“I didn’t have many friends as a child. I was lonely, and I just focused on my studies and ignored everyone. People made fun of me and I was just utterly alone. In my 4th year of school, I made friends with a boy named Tom Riddle. Ihadn’t really noticed him before, but I realized that he was alone just like I was. We were each other’s only friends, but that just made our bond grow stronger. During 5th year, he started showing me dark magic and telling me about his plans for ruling the world. I was so young, so naive! I hung onto every word that left his mouth! He told me that together, we could make a difference and achieve greatness. And I believed him. He made me feel special. Of course, everyone wants to feel that way. But all throughout my life, no one had ever paid any attention to me. I believed everything he said and I thought that I meant something to him. But I was a fool. No one matters to him. He was only using me. But of course I had no idea at the time.” Tears had started to brim over her eyes and her voice was becoming thick.

“By our 7th year, our friendship turned into a romantic relationship, if you can even call it that. I had never been with anyone before- I didn’t know what it was supposed to be like. He was controlling and harsh and it was awful. But I was blind and all I knew was that he made me feel like I mattered, and that what we were doing was important. By this time, he had a group of people that practiced the dark arts with him, his followers. And I was a part of it. After we graduated, we kept it up and he gained even more followers and we called ourselves Death Eaters. A girl named Bellatrix joined us and fell in love with Tom and was cruel to me out of jealousy. She and Tom became close friends and I was jealous of how much time he was spending with her, although he promised me that he didn't think of her in that way. Anyway, we came up with all sorts of new dark magic, and tested it on Muggles. People died because of me. And the worst part,” she was crying now. “The worst part is that I thought what we were doing was right! I was so desperate to please Tom that I did anything he wanted and I was proud of it! Oh, God I’m sorry.”

She burst into tears and Matt put his arm around her shoulders, rubbing her back gently.

“I’m so sorry,” she sobbed into his chest. “I’ve never told anyone this before, and it’s so hard.”

She broke off with another sob and he just pulled her close.

“Shh, it’s okay,” he whispered. “You can stop if it’s too much.”

“No,” she shook her head, pulling away from him. “I have to finish.”

She took a moment to compose herself and then continued.

“After a few years, I finally realized that what we were doing was wrong. I managed to escape, and I told the Ministry of Magic about the Death Eaters. That’s why they hate me so much now, because I betrayed them. I didn’t want them to find me, so I cut myself off from the wizarding world all together. I started a new life and pretended to be human, putting my past behind me. Soon after I left the Death Eaters, I realized that I was pregnant with Salome,” she smiled wistfully. “She was- is- the light of my life. For a while, I didn’t tell her who her father was. Every time she brought it up, I changed the subject. She didn’t even know she was a witch until a few years ago when I told her everything, because I knew that she would go to Hogwarts when she was 11.”

“So Salome is magical too?” Matt asked.

Alex nodded.

“By this time, Tom had started calling himself Lord Voldemort. In French, Voldemort means ‘flight from death’, which is what he was doing. Escaping death.”

“What do you mean, escaping death? Like he had a lot of close calls?”

“No, not exactly. He split his soul up into,” she took a breath, “eight pieces. Called Horcruxes.”

She went on to explain to him how seven of the Horcruxes were made, and how they were destroyed in the war.

He tallied them on his fingers and looked up at her when she was done speaking.

“What about the eighth?”

“Do you remember how I said a Horcrux can be a person, like how Harry Potter was the seventh?”

“Yes, of course.”

“I’m the eighth.”

“What?” he said, as if he hadn’t heard her correctly.

She sighed. “I am the eighth Horcrux.”

“How?” he breathed.

“I was the first, actually. The night he committed his first murder was the same night that,” she blushed slightly, “we lost our virginity to each other.”

She focused on a spot on the wall behind Matt’s head, refusing to meet his gaze.

“And now they called me back again,” she continued softly. “The Death Eaters. I can’t escape them. I didn’t even know I was a Horcrux until a week ago when Bellatrix told me. Tom had told her a long time ago, and she never told anyone. I was their secret weapon all this time. Everyone thought that he was completely defeated after the last war, but I’m still here.”

Tears were beginning to thicken her voice again.

“Bellatrix used my blood to bring him back again. I had no choice but to comply, because she threatened to hurt Salome if I didn’t, or if I told any wizards about Voldemort’s return. The reason I was so tired this past week was because of the dark rituals Bellatrix forced all Death Eaters to attend to bring Voldemort back. And that time in the read-through room when it probably looked like I fainted?”

Matt nodded.

"I have a connection with Tom. A sort of mental link. Now I realize that it only started after I became a Horcrux, but of course I didn't know that at the time. We used to communicate that way, but it stopped when I broke off from the Death Eaters. The time you saw was after Bellatrix had already began the rituals to bring him back and he was telling me that he had returned. That's why I was so scared that day. And I thought I couldn't tell you any of this because when Bellatrix threatened me she said I couldn't tell any wizards I completely didn't even realize that you weren't a wizard and I could tell you,” she broke off, out of breath.

“I’m so sorry,” she whispered, not daring to look into his eyes. “You can leave now. You probably can’t even stand to look at me anymore after what I told you.”

She shut her eyes and turned her body away from him, dreading the pain that was about to come when she felt his weight lift off the couch and the door close behind him. 

But that didn’t happen.

Instead, she felt his arms slip around her.

She tried to speak but no sound came out.

“Alex,” he said softly. “You’re not one of them anymore.”

“But I was,” she protested, looking up at him. “I killed people, Matt. And I didn’t even do anything good once I left them- I hid. Bellatrix even taunted me by saying that I had ‘joined the light side’ when in reality I did no such thing. And to cap it off, I am now the reason that the whole world is in danger.”

“Alex, you know that’s not true. It’s Bellatrix’s fault and it’s Voldemort’s fault, not yours. And of course I don’t support what you did, but the important part is that you realized that it was wrong and got away from it. And you told the ministry about them, that’s not nothing, Alex.”

“So you don’t hate me?” she asked quietly.

“Of course not,” he whispered, pressing gentle kisses into her hair.

They sit in silence for a moment, and then he asked, “When you pulled your arm away from me that day? Was that where Bellatrix took your blood?”

She nodded wordlessly against his chest.

Carefully, rolled up the sleeve of her sweater on her left arm, revealing the inky swirls of the trademark snake and skull with bloody slashes through it.

“That’s the Dark Mark,” she explained. “All Death Eaters have them.”

“Oh, Alex,” he whispered. “They hurt you.”

“They were angry with me for betraying them.”

He softly kissed the angry red marks on her arm, and she felt a shiver race up her spine at the feeling of his lips on her skin.

He pulled her close again and she sighed.

“So what are we going to do now?” he asked.

“There is only one person who can help me,” she said. “I’ve no idea where to find him, and even if I did I’m fairly certain he wants nothing to do with me.”

“Who is it, Alex? Whoever it is, I’ll help you find them.”

“It’s the boy I mentioned earlier. The seventh Horcrux, the one who defeated Voldemort in the last war,” she took a breath. “I need to find Harry Potter.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, thank you so much for reading and please, please, please comment!!


	5. The Quest for Harry Potter

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Alex, Matt, and Salome search for Harry.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I'm a week late, but I did warn you last time that school and testing is crazy right now, and it isn't going to let up anytime soon. I have a Tumblr now (WOO-HOO!!!!!!). My url is trisprior111 and you should follow me because I'm awesome :) Anyway, this chapter is really long and I'm not happy with the way it turned out but oh well it keeps the story moving forward. The next one will be better, I promise!

When Alex woke up the next morning on the couch, she felt completely disoriented, wondering how she had gotten there, when suddenly she remembered everything from the night before. And then she realized that Matt wasn’t there. Although she should have expected it, it still felt like a knife in her heart. Of course he had run. He had just been in shock at first and he ran away when it all sunk in. Even though she didn’t want to admit it to herself, a tiny part of her had thought that he really would stay. But that didn’t matter now. She was on her own, and that was the end of it.

She felt a tear roll down her cheek and angrily wiped it away with her sleeve. She was not going to cry over this. She would figure something out. But the tears kept flowing and wouldn’t stop. Part of her had really, truly thought that he would stay and that he cared. She silently cursed herself for being so foolish. Who would care about her? After finding out that she was a murderer?

Within minutes, she was full out sobbing, and didn’t hear the door open or the footsteps walking inside.

“Alex?”

Matt’s voice.

Her head snapped up to see him standing in the entryway, looking at her with concern.

“Matt-you -you’re -I thought you had…” she trailed off. “I thought you left.”

“Oh, love, please don’t be upset,” he sat down next to her and took her hands.

“I thought you had gone,” she choked as more tears flowed down her cheeks. “And I wouldn’t blame you.”

“Oh, Alex, look at me,” he said. “I was just in shock, and I was going through it all in my head but I couldn’t think so I basically drove all night to sort things out. But Alex, I would never abandon you no matter what. I’m so sorry that you woke up to find me gone. I realize how that looked now, but believe me when I say that that was never my intention.”

“You shouldn’t be the one apologizing!” she cried. “You had every right, you still have every right to leave. I never wanted you to get dragged into this, I really didn’t.”

“I’m with you no matter what,” he said firmly.

Before she could respond, Salome came shuffling out to the kitchen in her pajamas.

“Mum, are you okay?” she asked, taking in Alex's tear-stained face. 

“Fine, darling,” Alex replied, getting up and pulling her daughter into a tight hug. “Want some breakfast?”

“Sure.”

Alex pulled scones from the refrigerator and set a kettle on the stove to boil for tea. 

Once they were all seated at the table, Alex told Salome that Matt knew what was going on. 

"We have to find Harry," Alex explained. "And he's going to help us. The problem is we have no idea where he is. Do you remember hearing anything concerning his whereabouts at Hogwarts? Anything at all?"

Salome thought for a moment and started to shake her head, and then suddenly said, "Wait-yes! They said..." scrunched up her face as she racked her brain, "they said he was training with aurors in Scotland near Aberdeen." 

Matt whipped out his phone from his back pocket. 

"Siri, find me plane tickets to Scotland!"

Alex and Salome exchanged an amused glance. 

"Darling," Alex stifled a laugh. "We won't be needing plane tickets." 

"What do you mean? Driving would take far too long, and we want to get there as soon as possible, don’t we?”

“Yes, but we have something faster than a plane,” Alex grinned. “Apparition.”

“Appa-what?”

“Wizarding thing,” Salome jumped in. “I’m too young to do it. It’s where you vanish from one place and reappear in another in the blink of an eye.”

“Much easier way to travel,” Alex explained.

“So how exactly are we going to do that?” Matt asked in a small voice.

“I can apparate,” Alex said. “And I’ll take you both with me. It’s called side-along apparition.”

“Is it going to hurt?”

“It might feel a bit weird,” she said. “Like you’re getting squeezed. But it will be over before you know it, I promise.”

“Well, alright,” he said nervously.

She smiled reassuringly. “We should pack our things and then head off.”

After Alex was done packing, she went to Salome’s room. When she opened the door, she saw Salome sending her owl out the window.

“Who was that for?” Alex asked.

“Oh, that was for Coral so she and Aria and Violet knew I was okay. I didn’t tell her anything except that I was going to be out of school for a while and there was family drama.”

Alex nodded. “Are you all packed?”

“Yep! Ready to go?”  
“Yeah, I think so,” she replied, then put her face in her hands. “Oh God, maybe we shouldn’t even do this. He probably won’t even talk to me.”

“Mum, we’ve got to,” Salome said, wrapping her arms around her mother.

They stood like that for a moment, just holding each other.

“You’re right darling,” Alex said finally. “Let’s go.”

They met Matt in the living room and Alex took both of their hands.

“Are you going to be okay?” Alex asked Matt, seeing the pallid shade of his face.

“Yeah, let’s just get it over with,” he said faintly.

“Whatever you do, don’t let go, alright?”

“Got it,” he swallowed.

Alex focused as hard as she could on the forest in Aberdeen and felt the familiar whirlwind effects as they disapparated. She held on especially tightly to Matt’s hand, and when they arrived she was relieved to see that everyone was in one piece.

“Oh my God,” Matt said, taking in the scenery around them. They were standing on a thick bed of yellow and red leaves and looking up at the tips of an endless sea of pine trees and a gray sky. “We were just at the flat, and then…”

“You’ll get used to it, darling,” Alex smiled. “Wasn’t so bad, was it?”

“No, just a little...shocking.”

Salome giggled. “It won’t be as bad the second time.”

“Second time?” he gulped. “We’re doing this again?”

“It’ll be fine,” Alex assured him, putting a hand on his shoulder. “Now, we better start searching.”

“How are we going to find him?” Matt asked. “He could be anywhere in Aberdeen.”

“Yes, and the auror camp will be invisible, and heavily protected.”

Matt looked at her quizzically. “So…”

“So, we have to catch someone when they’re outside the camp,” Alex explained. “Magic can’t create food, so they have to hunt. I know this isn’t exactly a brilliant plan, but it’s the only way.”

***************

That night, they set up the tent and Alex let Matt go first to put his things inside. She and Salome waited outside, already giggling at what was about to happen.

Seconds after he had disappeared inside the tent, he dashed back outside and walked all the way around it, finally returning to the entrance to the tent where Alex and Salome were waiting.

“It’s bigger on the inside!” he proclaimed, and they all erupted into a chorus of laughter.

“When do the surprises end?” he asked as they all made their way inside and set their bags down.

Alex shrugged, a twinkle in her eye. “I don’t know; I don’t think about things like this because it’s all so normal to us.”

Matt nodded in understanding.

“Alright, off to bed with you,” Alex said, ruffling Salome’s hair.

“Do I have to?” she whined.

“Yes, you do. Go brush your teeth.”

Salome obliged, heading off to the bathroom.

Alex and Matt set up their things on the cots on the other side of the room.

Matt sat down on his bed and ran his fingers through his hair, sighing.

Alex sat across from him. “Hey, are you alright?”

“Yeah, yeah I’m fine.”

“Really, are you? I mean, yesterday when you came to check on me, you had no idea what you were getting yourself into. You’ve had all of this information thrust at you, and I feel terrible for dragging you into this.”

“Alex,” he said softly. “You’re not dragging me into this, I want to help you. And of course I didn’t expect this, but it’s how it turned out, and I’m fine with it.”

“I feel like this is just ludicrous. The chances of us finding him are incredibly slim, and when we do, what if he refuses to even listen?”

“That’s just a chance that we’re going to have to take,” Matt said, taking her hands in his. “It’s the only way.”

She nodded, and then realized how close together they were. She could feel his warm breath on her cheek and smell his cologne. She looked up into his eyes and saw the way he was staring at her intensely.

“Alex…” he whispered. He leaned in closer until their lips were centimeters apart.

“Mum, I think I forgot my pajamas,” Salome announced as she came back into the room from brushing her teeth.

Alex and Matt hastily jolted apart.

“Oh, that’s alright darling, you can just have one of my shirts,” Alex dug into her suitcase and pulled out a t-shirt, handing it to her.

“Thanks,” Salome said, going into the other room to change.

“Well, I’m going to brush my teeth,” Alex said quietly, grabbing her toothbrush and avoiding Matt’s eyes.

***************

Alex opened her eyes in the middle of the night to see Voldemort’s face inches from hers.

“Don’t scream, Alexandra,” he said. “You will come with me or I’ll kill her.”

She focused her gaze on the space next to him and saw him holding the tip of his wand to Salome’s neck.

“You wouldn’t.”

“I would.”

She got out of bed, slipping her wand from under her pillow.

“That’s it,” he said. “Nice and easy.”

Slowly she stood up, keeping her wand behind her back.

“Come with me, Alexandra.”

In a flash, she pointed her wand at him and yelled, “Expelliarmus!”

His wand flew across the room.

She yanked Salome away from him and pulled her into her arms and Voldemort swooped down to retrieve his wand.

“Avada Kedavra.”

In slow motion, Alex saw a jet of green light flash from his wand and hit Salome.

“No!” she screamed, catching Salome’s limp body before she could fall. “No, you can’t do this!”

She sobbed as she clung to her daughter’s lifeless form, and then Voldemort started shaking her shoulders.

“Wake up, Alex!” he said, but it sounded like Matt’s voice.

Suddenly, she was back on her cot and Matt was looking down at her with worried eyes.

She sat bolt upright. Tears were rushing down her cheeks.

“Alex, are you-”

“Where’s Salome?” she gasped.

“Mum, what’s wrong? I heard you crying,” Salome said as she rushed over to Alex and Matt.

“Just a nightmare,” Alex whispered, pulling Salome into a tight embrace. “You can go back to sleep. I love you.”

“I love you too, mum,” Salome replied, and walked back to her bed.

“Hey,” Matt pulled Alex into his arms and she clung to him tightly. “You okay?”

He felt her nod against his chest.

“What did you dream about?”

“He- he killed her. He killed Salome,” she whispered, starting to cry again.

“Oh, Alex, it’s alright. She’s safe now,” he soothed, smoothing her hair.

She fell asleep in his arms, and as she drifted off, she realized that she never wanted to sleep anywhere else.

***************

 

They spent the next two weeks searching the forests of Aberdeen for any sign of life, but were unsuccessful. Salome was getting tired and disagreeable, complaining constantly. Everyone's spirits were down and they were losing hope of ever finding Harry. 

"Mum, I want to go home," Salome whined as they trecked through the forest. "I don't want to do this anymore."

"Honey, I know, but I can't leave you at home by yourself because it isn't safe." 

"Well maybe we should all just go home. It's not like we're ever going to find him," she snapped. 

"Hey," Matt said, putting his hand on her shoulder. "We'll find him eventually."

"She's right," Alex said suddenly. "This is hopeless." 

"How else are we going to stop what's happening?" Matt asked softly. 

"I don't know!" Alex cried, exasperated. "But this-this isn't going anywhere! We could have already passed the camp and we wouldn't have even known it because they could have been inside the barriers!" 

"Sssh!" came a stern voice from behind a tree. "You'll scare it away!" 

They started, this being the first time they had met another living soul in the woods. 

A face with brown hair covering the forehead and large glasses perched on the nose peeked out from behind the tree trunk. 

"That rabbit over there, see?" he pointed to a white hare down by the stream with the hand that carried his bow and arrow.

Alex stared at the boy open mouthed. 

"You're-you're...Harry Potter,” she managed.

He looked at her curiously. “How do you know who I am?”

“It’s okay, I’m a witch,” she said. “You don’t have to play at anything here.”

“What’s your name?”

“Alex.”

“Oh, I’ve heard about you,” he remarked, showing no sign of either disdain or approval.

She swallowed. “I’m sure you have. I promise, I’m not one of them anymore. There’s something very serious going on that we need to tell you about. Oh and this is Matt, my...friend. And my daughter, Salome.”

“So is she...his daughter?” Harry said after a moment of hesitation, putting emphasis on the word his.

Alex nodded.

They all stared at each other awkwardly for a moment.

“So,” Harry said, shifting his weight from one foot to the other, the rabbit long forgotten. “What’s going on that I need to know about?”

Alex glanced around. “We need to go somewhere private.”

Harry looked at each of them in turn, as if deciding whether or not to trust them.

“Harry, please,” Alex implored. “I know you have no reason to trust us, but you’re the only hope we have of stopping what’s happening.”

Alex pulled her wand from her pocket and handed it to him, motioning for Salome to follow.

“Alright,” Harry said finally as he took the wands. “I trust you. Let’s go.”

He led them inside the Auror camp that had previously been invisible. There was an array of cream colored tents set up around a fire pit and a training area. People were milling about, and gave the foursome strange looks when they entered the camp.

“In here,” Harry jerked his head in the direction of one of the tents.

“I don’t want her to hear this,” Alex told Harry, gesturing to Salome.

Harry nodded in understanding.

“Ron!” he called.

A lanky redhead wearing a flannel shirt and jeans came jogging around the corner.

“What's up, mate?”

“I need you to keep her entertained while we have a talk,” Harry said.

Ron looked at Harry questioningly, but he just shook his head. 

Salome looked up at her mother. “Why can’t I hear what you guys are saying? Didn’t you tell me already?”

“Yes, dear, but we need to have an adult discussion, alright?”

Alex hated keeping secrets from her daughter, but she couldn’t know that she was the threat; it was too much to put on a child’s shoulders.

“Alright,” Salome said reluctantly, eyeing Ron skeptically.

“Come on!” he said encouragingly. “We’ll have fun. I can teach you some new spells!”

Her eyes lit up. “Okay!”

Harry handed her back her wand. “Be careful.”

“I will,” she giggled. 

Alex and Matt followed Harry into the tent and they sat down around an oak colored table in the center of the tent.

“Alright, what’s going on?” Harry asked them.

Alex sighed. “Matt, you need to tell him.”

His eyes widened. “Why me?”

“You know why,” she looked him in the eyes, and he realized that she couldn’t tell Harry because Harry was a wizard, and that he was going to have to do it. He swallowed thickly.

“Right,” he said. “So...basically, we have bad news.”

“Yes, I gathered that earlier,” Harry said impatiently. “What’s going on?”

“Voldemort has returned,” Matt said solemnly.

“What?” Harry surged forward in his chair, his head snapping up and his glasses bouncing once on the ridge of his nose.

“You heard correctly,” Alex said quietly.

“How do you know-how long has-how did you even…”Harry trailed off, looking between Matt and Alex helplessly.

Matt went on to explain everything that Alex had told him. When he was finished, Harry sat back in his chair and ran a hand through his hair.

“Harry, do you believe us?” Alex asked.

“Yes,” he nodded slowly. “I wish you were lying, but it makes too much sense not to be true. I had never even considered the possibility of another Horcrux; I was so sure that we had destroyed them all. The whole world is in danger...again. We’re going to have to tell all the others.”

Alex breathed a sigh of relief. He believed them. He was going to help them, and everything was going to be okay. WIth Harry on their side, there was no way they could lose.

They exited the tent and went to get Salome. When they found her and Ron, she was giggling as he seemed to be telling her a story with exaggerated hand movements. 

"Ron," Harry said gravely. "I am calling a meeting of the whole camp." 

"What's happened?" worry lined Ron's face as he took in their somber expressions. 

"You'll find out at the meeting, now gather as many people as you can," Harry told him. "And we need to contact Hermione as soon as possible." 

"I'm not doing anything until you tell me what's going on," Ron said stubbornly. "And who are they, anyway?"

Harry threw up his hands in exasperation. 

"Okay, fine," he sighed. "Ron, Voldemort has returned."

Ron's mouth fell open. "What-how-I don't understand...he died." 

"Yes. I'll explain it at the meeting," Harry said. "And this is Alex and Matt. Salome is her daughter.”

"What have they got to do with this?" Ron demanded. 

"They told me the news," Harry said patiently. 

Ron eyed them warily. "Are you sure about this?" 

"Yes," Alex said. "I've seen him."

Ron's eyes went wide. "You've-"

"Ron, I promise I will explain it all at the meeting, now please can you tell everyone to meet at the fire pit?"

"Right, right, okay," Ron said, and hurried off. 

***************

Once everyone had gathered in the center of camp and Harry had their attention, he looked from face to face, sighing at the reaction the news was sure to set off.

"I have called for a meeting because there has been a new development in the wizarding world that requires our immediate attention. And before any questions arise regarding the credibility of the source, I swear to you that what I am about to say is the complete truth."

Every pair of eyes was locked on his face. 

"Lord Voldemort has returned."

There was an instant of shocked silence, and then everything erupted into chaos.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As always, you are amazing for reading, you would be super amazing if you kudoed, and you would be super super amazing if you commented!!! <3


	6. Why Can't You Just Go

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Angst

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry sorry sorry! I have had absolutely no time to post anything recently. Please don't hate me. This chapter is really long so hopefully it makes up for the wait time. Enjoy!

Chapter 6: Why Can't You Just Go

The next morning, the golden sun rose over the tall trees, casting a rose-tinted glow over the auror camp and the woods beyond. Everything was still with the exception of the boy with floppy brown hair and a lightning shaped scar wandering through the trees outside the magical barriers of the camp, his hands in his pockets and his face turned up to the sky. All of the sudden, a familiar figure with sharp brown eyes and wavy chestnut hair appeared by the stream a ways ahead of him.

“Hermione!” Harry cried, running towards her. “You got the owl! We sent it really late last night and I wasn’t sure when you could get here if you were busy or…”

“I came as quickly as I could,” she said, closing the remaining distance between them and hugging him tightly. “What’s going on?”

Harry told her about Alex, Matt, and Salome, about Voldemort’s return, how Alex was the eighth Horcrux, and Voldemort's threats that prevented Alex from telling wizards what was happening. 

Hermione was silent for a moment, and then finally said, “Do you trust her?”

“Alex?”

Hermione nodded.

“Yes,” he said firmly. “I really do believe that she is telling the truth and that she isn’t a Death Eater anymore. She told the Ministry about them, remember? What reason would she have to make this up? And besides, we don’t have a choice. If we ignore this, he could take over the world.”

“Okay,” Hermione nodded slowly. “That makes sense. I would like to meet them... Alex, Matt, and Salome.”

“Now?” Harry asked.

“Yes. Before everyone else wakes up.”

Harry and Hermione made their way back to camp and to the tent Alex, Matt, and Salome were sharing.

**********  
That morning, Matt woke up before the sun rose, while the sky was no longer the inky color of night, but that strangely iridescent blue it always turned just before the fire of the sun graced the horizon. He thought about the last few days. How of all of the things that had gone through his mind as to what might be the reason why Alex was upset, this had definitely not been one of them. He still couldn't quite wrap his head around all of it; he felt as if he had been thrust into another world. As hard as he tried, he couldn't picture Alex doing any of the things she said she had done. Every time he looked at her, he tried to imagine her murdering someone, but he couldn't do it. She had never been anything but genuinely kind to him and the rest of the cast on Who in the time he had known her. In his eyes, that overshadowed her past. Of course what she had done was horrible, but it was who she was now that mattered. Matt was so lost in his thoughts that he nearly sprung off of the cot in surprise when he heard a light tapping on the canvas of their tent. Alex was still fast asleep next to him, her hair covering half of her face. He smiled, gently brushing it away, before getting out of bed, throwing on a t-shirt, and opening the flap of the tent. Harry and a girl he had never seen before with brown hair and a serious expression were standing outside.

“Sorry to wake you up,” said Harry, “but we need to talk to you. This is Hermione.”

“Nice to meet you,” Matt put out his hand awkwardly.

Hermione shook it firmly. “You too. I wanted to talk to you now while no one else is awake. Harry told me what’s going on.”

“Right,” Matt ran a hand through his hair. “Of course. Come in. They’re still asleep-Alex and Salome. I’ll go get them. You can just have a seat in the kitchen.”

Harry and Hermione stepped inside and sat down at the table.

Matt went back to the bedroom area and saw that Alex was awake, sitting up in bed. She looked adorable with her curls sticking up at different angles around her head.

“What’s going on?” she asked. “Is someone here?”

“Yeah, it’s Harry and his friend Hermione. She wants to talk to us.”

“Okay,” Alex sighed.

"I'll go wake Salome," Matt offered. 

"Thanks," Alex said, pulling an elastic off of her wrist and sweeping her hair into a bun. 

"What's going on, Matty?" Salome asked when he woke her up. 

"Harry's friend is here. She's very nice and she wants to talk to us." 

"Okay," she said, then hesitated. "Can I ask you a question?"

"Sure, poppet, what is it?"

She lowered her voice. "Matty, do you like my mum?"

"Of course I do," he said, hoping that she wouldn't press further. 

"No," Salome pursed her lips together. "I mean do you LIKE like her?" 

"Now why would you say that?"

She twisted her fingers in her lap. "The way you look at her. And you seem to care about her...you didn't have to come with us. You can't fight wizards, you must have had some other reason for coming."

He sighed, running his fingers through his hair. "Don't tell her, alright?"

"I won't," Salome grinned. "And just so you know, I think she likes you too."

He opened his mouth to reply, but she quickly jumped off the bed and ran around the corner giggling. 

He made a mental note to ask her later why she thought that. He had thought there was a possibility that Alex felt the same way, but he was probably just imagining it. Shaking it off, he followed Alex and Salome to the front of the tent and sat down with Harry and Hermione at the table. 

"Hello," Hermione greeted them, shaking both of their hands. "I'm Hermione. Harry and I have been friends since first year at Hogwarts."

Alex smiled. "I'm Alex, and this is my daughter Salome." 

"Nice to meet you," Hermione said. "I wanted to ask you some questions. Harry explained the situation to me." 

"Right," Alex swallowed. "What would you like to know?" 

"Well..." Hermione began. Her eyes flickered away and she stared avidly at a spot on the ground. 

Matt watched as she fidgeted with the edge of her coat and worked her bottom lip between her teeth. 

She opened and closed her mouth, and her eyes darted around the tent, looking everywhere except at Alex. 

Then she took a deep breath, squared her shoulders, and looked Alex straight in the eye. 

"Why did you do it?"

There was a moment of stunned silence as the words that has just been uttered sunk into the room. 

Matt glanced at Alex and saw her shift uncomfortably. 

"Hermione," Harry said through clenched teeth. "You can't just-"

"No, no," Alex said quickly. "It's fine, I just...I'm not really sure how to answer-"

"I'm sorry," Hermione said. "I didn't mean to be so blunt." 

"It's okay," Alex assured her. "Um...I know this is probably going to sound completely stupid and selfish but I didn't know any better. I was young and naive and I didn't know the first thing about the world. I felt so special that he had chosen me to start the Death Eaters with him. I felt important. And I..." she paused, looking up at the ceiling and trying to keep her tears at bay. When she spoke again, her voice was soft. "I eventually saw that what we were doing was wrong. But it was too late." Her voice caught in her throat. "The damage was done. And I will never, ever forgive myself."

She paused to wipe at the moisture on her cheeks. 

"I'm sorry," she said quietly, addressing Hermione and Harry, "for all of the pain I have caused you both." 

"It's not your fault, Alex," Harry said. 

"But it is!" she protested. 

"He would have found someone else," Harry said. "The same ends would have been achieved." 

"But if I wasn't alive right now, then this whole thing could-"

"Mum, you're scaring me," Salome interrupted. "I don't want to talk about this anymore."

"Okay, sweetie," Alex said. "We won't talk any more about it." 

"I'm sorry," Hermione said sincerely, looking Alex in the eye. "I didn't realize what a personal question I was asking."

"It's alright," Alex touched the younger woman's arm. 

There was a moment of awkward silence. 

"Well, I'd better get going," Harry said. "We'll talk more later, okay?" 

Alex nodded. Hermione followed him out of the tent, leaving Alex, Matt, and Salome alone at the table. 

"Are you alright?" Matt asked gently. 

"I'm fine," Alex said quickly, pasting on a smile that Matt could see right through. "Just a second." 

She slipped out the front of the tent and hurried after Hermione and Harry. 

"Hermione?" she called. 

She turned around. 

"Do you think...do you think you could watch Salome for a while?" she asked. 

"Of course!" Hermione smiled. "I'd be happy to." 

"Thank you so much," Alex said, relieved. "I'll go get her. If you could just keep her entertained for a little bit, that would be so helpful." 

"No problem at all," Hermione said as they entered the tent. Matt was brewing a pot of tea in the kitchen and Salome was still sitting at the table. 

"Honey, I need to talk with Matt for a few moments. Do you think you could go with Hermione?" 

Salome nodded. 

Hermione smiled warmly. "Do you want to go get some breakfast?" 

"Okay," she said shyly.

"See you in a bit, darling," Alex kissed the top of her daughter's head. 

"Bye, mum!"

Hermione and Salome disappeared through the flap of the tent, leaving Matt and Alex alone. They could hear the voices and footsteps outside; the camp waking up. 

"Do you want some tea?" he asked, attempting to break the awkward silence that had settled over the room. 

"Tea would be great, thank you," she said, and he poured it into mugs for both of them. 

There was a moment of silence as they both drank from their cups. 

"So," Matt began, clearing his throat, "what did you need to talk to me about?" 

Alex sighed. "Look, I really appreciate you coming with me, Matt. It means a lot that you cared that much. And that you stayed with me after knowing who I really was. But there's nothing else you can do. You can't fight wizards; you have no power against them. I don't want to put you into danger without reason." She studied her mug intently. "I think I need to take you home." 

"No."

She looked up to see him staring intensely at her. 

"What?"

"No. As in I won't leave you here. I'm staying."

"Why?" she said softly. "Why would you do that? You know there's nothing you can do."

He shook his head. "I know that, Alex, but I can't leave you to face this by yourself. You don't have to do this alone." 

"But I do!" she cried, standing up so quickly her chair almost fell over. "Matt, I never wanted to drag you into this mess in the first place! I never meant for this to happen. If you get hurt, it will be my fault! This is my problem, and it is my responsibility to solve it."

"I just want to be here for you," he rose from his chair as well, and tried to reach out and touch her arm, but she yanked it away from him. 

"Matt, I don't understand! Why do you want to do this? Why do you care so much? I told you who I am and what I've done and you didn't run and now I honestly wish you had. How can you still care?"

"Alex, why do you keep talking like this?" his voice increased in volume to match hers. "Like you're not worth it! Like I shouldn't care about you!"

He was certain that people could hear them from outside by now, but he didn't care.

"Because I'm not and you shouldn't!" she shouted. "I'm NOT worth it and you're blind if you can't see that! It's my fault the whole world is in terrible danger right now! Don't you see, Matt? I smashed up people and things and then hid because I was too much of a coward to face it! I DESTROY THINGS! I don't want you to get hurt or die because of me! You should be at home, working and going to clubs and meeting pretty girls instead of staying here with an old witch who had fucked up her life and everyone and everything in it! You shouldn't be here, Matt! Why can't you just GO?"

"BECAUSE I'M BLOODY IN LOVE WITH YOU!" 

He hadn't meant to say that. The words had just slipped out. 

The tension in the room faded and the anger whooshed out of both of them. 

"What?" she whispered, the shock evident on her face and her hand fluttering between her mouth and her heart. 

"You heard me." 

"I...no, darling," she shook her head. "I'm sorry, but that’s not possible." 

"Excuse me?" 

"You think you are," she laughed bitterly, "but you're not. You can't be."

He took a deep breath in an attempt to control the anger boiling up inside of him again. 

"I understand if you don't feel the same way, but please don't try to tell me how I feel about you." 

He saw tears start to form in her eyes. 

"Matt...how? How, after everything I've done? This is all my fault!"

"No," he said gently. "It isn't. It's Voldemort's fault and it's Bellatrix's fault, but it's not yours. I know you've done bad things, Alex, and I'm not ignoring that. But you got away from that and you're stronger because of it. You're kind and smart and funny and gorgeous and I just...I wish you could see yourself the way I see you." 

"Matt...darling..." her lip was trembling and her hands were shaking at her sides. 

"I understand if you don't feel the same, but I just...I needed to tell you that."

He stared at his shoelaces. 

"Of course I do," her voice was barely above a whisper. 

His eyes snapped up. 

"Of course I do," she repeated. 

In one swift motion, he closed the distance between them, cupped her cheek in his hand, and pressed his lips to hers. 

She tensed in surprise for a split second, and then melted into him. 

His other arm snaked around her waist and pulled her closer. He ran his tongue over her bottom lip and she opened her mouth beneath his. It was slow and gentle and he never wanted it to end.

"Matt," she whispered as they broke apart. 

"Do you believe me now?" he murmured, stroking her cheek with his thumb. 

"Yes, darling, I do," she smiled. 

He could still see the flicker of doubt in her eyes, but he just rested his forehead against hers and wrapped his arms protectively around her waist. 

**********  
That night, she was already asleep in bed by the time he finished getting ready. He turned out the light and slid into bed next to her, and couldn't resist brushing his fingers over her cheek and tucking a stray curl behind her ear. She opened her eyes into his and smiled. 

"I didn't mean to wake you," he whispered. 

"That's okay," she replied, lacing her fingers with his. 

He saw her bite her lip and stare down at their hands. 

"What is it, love?" he put a finger under her chin to make her look at him. 

"I want to be with you," she said, and he could see from the intensity in her eyes that it was true. "Possibly more than I have wanted anything in my life. But this is hardly the time to start a relationship. A war's about to begin, and I don't want you to become involved with me if I..."

Her voice trailed off but he understood what she meant. 

"No," he whispered. "No, that's not going to happen. I won't let it happen. I am in love with you, and we are going to make this work."

She sighed. "You have to promise me three things, Matt."

"Anything."

She propped herself up on her elbow to face him. 

"One, you will not put yourself in danger for me."

"Alex, I can't promise that. I can't stand there and watch you get hurt, or-"

"If you can't promise me that, then I have to take you home. Enough people have died because of me, Matt. I don't need to you be one of them." 

"Okay," he said softly, after a moment. "I don't like it, but okay." 

"Two..." she hesitated. "You know that if I wasn't alive right now, this whole thing would end, right?"

"Alex-"

"Yes or no question. You understand that, correct?"

"Yes," he whispered, feeling his heart ache. "But when you were first explaining this to me, you said that the Horcrux came out of Harry without him dying."

"Yes, I did, and that's true. But what I'm saying is...if I end up having to sacrifice myself to save the lives of others, you can't try and stop me."

"Alex," the pain was audible in his voice. "I can't...I could never let you just-" 

"Three," she interrupted him, tears falling down her cheeks. "If I die, you have to move on. You have to promise me that you will find someone who can give you what you deserve- love and a family and a normal life." 

"But you can give me love," he said. "And you and Salome are my family. And who cares about a normal life anyway?"

"Matt," she choked as tears flowed more freely. “You have to promise.”

He was crying now, too, and he pulled her closer and pressed a kiss to her hair.

“I promise,” he whispered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Kudo, comment, and follow me on Tumblr at trisprior111!


	7. The Cat

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I hate writing summaries! Just read it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm on vacation so I got another chapter posted! Yay me! The next one won't be up for a while because it's going to be really long. Most of the action of the story will be coming soon.

Alex lay awake long into the night as Matt slept beside her. What was she doing? What were they thinking? She couldn’t put him through this; she had never meant for him to get involved with this mess anyway. She couldn’t let him fall in love with her, because what would he do when she…  
She swallowed hard, refusing to think about the possibility. She couldn’t let him go; she was in too deep now. She was gazing fondly down at his peaceful face and reaching a hand out to stroke the hair on his forehead when she heard her daughter’s voice from the shadows.

“Mummy? Mummy are you awake?”

She sat up. “Yes, sweetie. Are you alright?”

Salome came over to her. “I can’t sleep. I keep hearing this noise outside. It sounds like someone screaming.”

They were silent for a moment and Alex heard it. It was a high-pitched wailing sound that sounded like it was coming from far away.

“Darling, you stay here. I’m going to go see what it is, okay?”

Salome nodded. “Okay.”

Alex slipped out of bed carefully to make sure Matt wouldn’t wake up, pulled on a pair of jeans and a sweater, grabbed her wand, and hurried outside.

The forest was dark and misty, and there was a chill in the wind that wrapped its cold fingers around her. She shivered and pulled her sweater more tightly around her, walking towards the sound. As she came closer, she realized that it didn’t really sound like a human scream, but more like a sound that would come from an animal. She wasn’t sure if she was comforted or more frightened by this, but she kept going anyway. When she finally came to the source of the sound, she breathed out a sigh of relief. It was just a small gray cat that appeared to have one of its paws caught on a vine. It was yelping and wailing in pain.

As she knelt down next to it, she had the strange feeling of being watched. Her eyes scanned the area around her, but she saw no one. Convinced she was just imagining it, she reached out and gently pet the cat to calm it.

“Hey,” she said softly, “it’s okay. I’m going to get you out of here.”

The cat’s cries ceased, and Alex carefully unwound the branch from around its foot. It rubbed its head against her leg and she smiled, petting the cat as it began to wander off.

“Twinkle!” came a voice from behind her. “Twinkle, is that you?”

An old woman in black robes emerged from the trees, and crouched down to welcome the cat into her arms. She had long matted gray hair and a small wrinkled face with piercing dark eyes.

“You freed her! Thank you so much,” the woman looked up at Alex. “I could hear her crying, and I didn’t know where she had gone. Is there anything I can do for you, dearie?”

“No, no thank you but I should probably be getting back to, um…” she hesitated, not wanting to give away the location of the auror camp, “where I was staying.”

“Nonsense,” she waved her hand. “Can I at least get you a cup of tea?”

Alex hesitated. Something didn’t feel right. She couldn’t describe it exactly, but something definitely felt off.

“I…” she trailed off.

The woman looked up at her with sad eyes. “It would be so nice to have some company. I hardly see anyone out in these woods.”

Alex bit her lip. “Okay,” she said finally, “but just for a little while. I really should be getting back.”

“Of course, of course, just follow me.”

The air seemed to only get colder as Alex followed the woman down to a small stone cottage nestled between two tall trees.

“You just sit down, dearie, and I’ll bring the tea in.”

Alex perched on the edge of a well-worn armchair in the adjoining room to the kitchen, wrapping her arms around herself and shivering, the warmth from the fireplace doing little to heat up the room. The feeling of something not being right only grew. There was something in the woman’s mannerisms that was familiar, but she couldn’t put her finger on it.

She was about to get up and tell the old woman that she really couldn’t stay when she came back into the room carrying two cups of steaming liquid.

“Here you are, dearie,” the woman smiled, handing her one of the cups.

“Thank you,” she said, the beverage immediately warming her hands. 

Alex sat back down and the woman stayed standing, watching her as she raised the cup to her lips and drank.

The tea tasted like spices and something else she couldn’t place. The heat of the liquid going down her throat was soothing to her frozen body, and she found herself leaning back into the chair, surrounded by a newfound warmth. Why had she felt like something was wrong? Nothing could be wrong, not when everything was so comfortable and warm…

“How’s the tea, dearie?”

The old woman’s voice made Alex’s head snap back up. No, something was most definitely not right.

“Your hair…” Alex was aware of the words sounding slurred as they came out of her mouth, “wasn’t it gray?”

The woman’s eyes followed hers down to her long, ratty locks of hair that were now jet-black.

“Yes,” a slow grin spread over her face. Alex had seen that grin before. She had to get out of here.

“I...I really...thank you for your kindness, but I really have to…” Alex tried to stand up, but her body felt like lead and the room was tilting at dangerous angles around her.

The woman cackled, and Alex looked up through a blurry haze to see the face of Bellatrix Lestrange smiling wickedly down at her.

“You really thought you were safe, Alexandra?” Bellatrix taunted. “That I wouldn’t find you?”

“No,” she whispered, feeling herself beginning to lose consciousness. She tried desperately to stand all the way up, bracing one hand on the arm of the chair. Bellatrix only cackled louder.

“Don’t try to fight it, Alexandra. You’ll only make it worse,” Bellatrix crooned. “I’ll see you when you wake up.”

She finally succumbed to the feeling of lead pulling her down, and everything went black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading!! Please comment! Kudo, COMMENT, and follow me on Tumblr at trisprior111. Please comment. Thank you. Wait, did I mention that you should comment?


	8. The Dinner

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Voldemort tries to convince Alex to come to his side.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am SO SO sorry...this is an unacceptable amount of time to go without posting. The good news is my SAT, ACT, and AP tests are over so I'll finally have time to write again. Most of my time in the last month has been taken up with studying for my AP calculus test, but now it's over!!! I am liberated!!!! Anyway...this chapter will probably raise some questions so if you have any leave them in the comments, but I can't answer all of them because some things are going to be revealed later :)

The first thing she felt was pain. Sharp needles of it all over her body. Her arms and legs felt stiff as boards and her head felt like it was on the verge of splitting open. Slowly, Alex opened her eyes. She was in a small, dark, stone chamber with a door and windowless walls. Malfoy Manor. It had to be. She was in one of the dungeons. She tried to sit up, but immediately regretted it as searing white-hot heat shot through every nerve in her body. She lay back down and bit her lip, tears suddenly springing to her eyes. She couldn’t even remember how she had gotten here. The last thing she remembered clearly was Matt. She remembered making him promise her those three things, and then she remembered his arms around her as she fell asleep, then everything was fuzzy. She closed her eyes and concentrated on trying to remember what had happened. Salome had woken her up and said that there was a loud noise outside. Then … what had happened after that? Something about a cat … .and she remembered a cottage. An old woman .... had invited her inside … why had she gone? Why had she gone inside? What had she been thinking going into a stranger’s house in the middle of the night? And … tea … the woman had given her tea and … Bellatrix. It had been Bellatrix.

As if on cue, the door opened and a familiar figure slunk into the room.

“Hello, Alexandra,” Bellatrix’s lips curved into a cruel grin. “Did you sleep well?”

“What do you want?” Alex demanded through clenched teeth, sitting up abruptly and grimacing through the pain.

“An old friend of yours would like to talk to you. He asked me to bring you here.”

A thought suddenly occurred to her. “H-how did you know where I was? How did you know where to find me?” Alex asked, her voice shaking, afraid of what the answer might be.

“So observant!” Bellatrix exclaimed with mock incredulity. “So intelligent! Interesting that you noticed that, but,” she giggled, “went into a stranger’s house for tea in the middle of the night!”

“I … I can’t remember why I did that,” Alex whispered, more to herself than to Bellatrix. “Why can’t I remember … ”

Bellatrix, still cackling gleefully, leaned down until her face was inches from Alex’s.

“I think I have a pretty good idea, dearie, but I’m not going to tell you!” she sing-songed. “You’ll find that out later, along with how I knew where you were.”

“Please just tell me,” Alex pleaded as Bellatrix stood up and all but skipped over to the door.

“Oh, I couldn’t do that now,” Bellatrix cooed, tossing one last glance over her shoulder at Alex. “I fear it would break your heart.”

She swept out of the room and Alex blinked as the door slammed shut behind her, trying to make sense of what she had just heard. However, she didn’t have much time before the door opened again, much more slowly this time.

She froze, knowing who it would be before the door even opened all the way. She stepped backwards until she was pressed with her back against the cold stone wall at the far side of the chamber, as far away from the door as she could possibly be.

The door creaked open and the pale face and black robes that plagued her dreams stepped into the room. 

This was the first time they had been face to face, not in a vision, since the night she had left.

“Alexandra,” his lips curved into what could only be described as a sinister smile. “It’s so good to see you again.”

She didn’t reply, just stayed where she was, the coldness from the wall seeping through her sweater and chilling her body.

“You don’t have to be afraid of me. I’m not going to hurt you.”

"What do you want from me, Tom?" she asked quietly, her voice trembling against her will.

He advanced across the chamber towards her, and as she looked into his eyes, she caught a glimpse of the man she had fallen in love with all those years ago. But that was all gone now. She didn’t even know him anymore. Not this new cold, hard version of him so unlike the man she once knew and the boy who she had grown up with.

“Do you remember when we used to make plans for the future? All of the things we were going to do together?”

His words brought Alex back to their lazy days spent lying on the grass after class at Hogwarts, writing down their dreams for ruling the world. She had been so young and impressionable, she believed everything he told her.

“Of course I remember,” she whispered.

“We could still do that. Everything we talked about,” he reached out and brushed his thumb across her cheek. His finger was ice cold, and she turned her head away from him.

She shook her head. “It doesn’t work like that, Tom. We were children, we thought we could do anything we wanted. Those were foolish, stupid dreams. I have a real life now, apart from you, and I don’t want anything to do with you.”

He didn’t look hurt. He just smiled, as if he had known that she was going to say that. “Oh, Alexandra, how wrong you are. All of our dreams are coming true. I am taking over the world! We can have everything we ever wanted. With you at my side, we would be unstoppable."

“Those were your dreams, Tom, not mine!” she cried. “Not anymore! If you think for one second that I would help you in any way, you’ve got another thing coming!”

He just shook his head and smiled, not the least bit bothered by her outburst. “You’ll see, Alexandra. I promise you, you’ll see.”

He left the chamber and Alex slumped down against the wall, all of the activity and emotion of the last hour suddenly gone. Tears filled her eyes and she did nothing to stop them. She brought her knees to her chest and wrapped her arms around them, and cried. She was cold and she was alone and she didn’t know what to do. She had never felt so alone in her life. She still couldn’t figure out exactly how or why she had gotten here, she didn’t even know how long she had been here, and nothing anyone was telling her made any sense. She thought of Matt and Salome back at the camp. They must have realized that she was gone. What were they doing now? Would they ever find her? She felt in her pocket for her wand, but it wasn’t there. She had suspected as much- it wasn’t as if Bellatrix would have overlooked something like that, but it made her feel worse all the same, crushing the last bit of hope she had. Alex curled up on the floor, her hands underneath her head as a pillow, and cried herself to sleep.  
***********  
The next day passed uneventfully until much later when Bellatrix came into the chamber.

“Good evening, Alexandra!” Bellatrix chirped. “How are you doing?”

Alex sat up and leveled her with a glare.

Bellatrix laughed.” There’s no need for that, dearest.”

“Bellatrix, what did you mean yesterday?” Alex ignored her sarcastic endearing tone. “When you said how you knew where I was would break my…”

“Well, I said I couldn’t tell you, didn’t I? I’m sorry, but I just couldn’t do it! Best to keep it secret a little longer. You’ll find out eventually. As for right now, our Lord would like to dine with you tonight. He wants to discuss some things with you.”

“Well, you can tell him that I am not interested in anything he wants to say to me.”

“He said you might say that,” Bellatrix giggled. “In which case I am to remind you that I am the one holding the wand in this room. And also, he said that you really will be interested.”

“I highly doubt that,” Alex muttered, getting up.

Bellatrix led her up the grand staircase to the second story of the manor.

“Where are we going?”

“Well, he thought it would be best that you were able to get ready before dinner.”

Bellatrix flung open the door to an ornate bed chamber with plush carpeting, a large canopy bed with satin sheets, and a mahogany dresser and vanity. She stepped inside, motioning for Alex to follow, and opened the closet.

“Our Lord has requested that you wear this,” Bellatrix pulled out a plum colored ballgown dress that had gathered sleeves and black and gold embellishments.

“He is not ‘Our Lord’,” Alex snapped, her eyes suddenly wide with rage. “He might be your Lord but he is not mine anymore, nor will he ever be. I will wear no such thing. I’m going like this or not at all!”

“Alexandra,” Bellatrix crooned. “There is no need for this. Our Lord has requested that you wear this dress so you will wear it.”

“What are you going to do about it? You can’t kill me!”

“No, but I could hurt you,” Bellatrix tapped her wand thoughtfully against her chin, “or your daughter. We already went over this at one of our meetings, don’t you remember?”

Alex snatched the dress from her hands, her jaw set tight.

“That’s it, Alexandra. Now get ready. He is expecting you in a half hour.”

And with that, Bellatrix was gone, leaving Alex alone in the room.

She sighed and lay the dress down on the bed. The bed looked so comfortable and soft, and her whole body ached from having slept on the floor the night before. She yearned to lay down, just for a second, but she knew that if she did, she wouldn’t be able to find it within herself to get back up.

She walked over to the bathroom and started running water in the tub. She took off her clothes and sank into the warm water, closing her eyes as she felt her stiff muscles begin to relax.

When she was done, she put the dress on and went back to sit on the bed until she heard a knock at the door and Bellatrix calling her name.

She reluctantly opened the door and looked up into Bellatrix’s crooked grin.

“You look gorgeous, dearest. The color suits you,” Bellatrix’s voice dripped with false sweetness.

“Let’s just get this over with,” Alex muttered through gritted teeth.

Bellatrix just laughed lightly and led Alex back down the grand staircase to a lavish dining room. The walls were a strange shimmering color, adorned with ebony and gold accents. There was a long black table that looked like it could seat over twenty people in the center, laden with turkey, rolls, grapes, cheese, and wine. Voldemort sat at the head of the table, his hands folded in front of him.

“Come and sit down, Alexandra,” he said, gesturing to the place next to him.

Alex walked to the other end of the room and pulled out the chair, tucking in the skirts of her dress underneath her.

Bellatrix lingered at the entrance, her eyes darting between Voldemort and Alex.

“You may go, Bellatrix,” Voldemort waved his hand, in the direction of the door.

“Of course, my Lord,” she bowed her head and left the room.

They sat in silence for a moment. She decided not to say anything; he was the one who had wanted to talk to her. He needed to speak first.

“You must be hungry,” he said.

She glared at him. “What makes you think I would eat any of this? I have no idea what’s going on, but all I know is that I don’t trust you at all.”

“It’s perfectly safe, I promise. I never intended to hurt you. It will all make sense very soon.”

“I still don’t trust you. Nothing you say is going to change that. Because for all I know, you’re lying.”

“Alexandra,” he sighed, leaning back in his chair, “why would I hurt you? Think this through. What motive would there be behind that? I need you. I need you to help me. It’s up to you, but it really would be a pity if you starved.”

He took a turkey leg from the platter in front of them and began to eat it. She realized that what he was saying made sense; he had begged her to join him- he needed her on his side. She hadn’t eaten in days. She plucked a roll from the silver bowl and took a small bite. It tasted normal and after a moment had passed, she didn’t feel any different, so she loaded her plate with food. They didn’t speak as they ate; it was only after they had both finished that she broke the silence.

“I don’t get it.”

He looked up at her questioningly. “Don’t get what?”

She threw her hands up. “Why did you lock me in the dungeon for days, giving me nothing- no food, no water, no blankets, and then send me to that room to get ready to come have a feast with you? Is this some sort of game?”

His mouth twitched in amusement. “A sort of game, I suppose. Alexandra, it is a metaphor. In the chamber, you’re right, you were given nothing. You had nothing. It was barren. That will be your life if you refuse me. But the other room represents what your life would be like if you agree to join my side. A life of luxury, of splendor. You can have everything you ever wanted. In short, if you choose not to join me, everything and everyone you love will be taken from you. But if you choose to join me, you can have it all. What do you say, my dearest?”

“I don’t believe you. Not for one second,” her voice was trembling with controlled rage. “You would take everything from me either way. I would never side with you, not in a million years.”

“Alexandra, I am telling the truth. Matt and Salome will be unharmed if you side with me. Yes, I know about Matt. I know you’re in love with him and you think he loves you too.”

“What do you mean?” she demanded. 

“He doesn’t really love you. He just feels trapped now. You’ve pulled him too deep into your problems and he can’t get out. How could he love someone like you? Your life is behind you, my love,” his voice was soft and taunting. As he spoke, anger boiled inside of her until she had clenched her hands into shaking fists on her lap. “And he’ll realize that soon enough. Soon enough, he’ll realize that while he is still at the height of his career, you’ll be fading away. And he’ll leave you.”

“STOP IT!” she screamed. “JUST STOP TALKING! YOU DON’T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT US!”

“You just don’t want to hear the truth.”

“You don’t know,” she shook her head. “You can’t say you know the truth because you don’t know what the truth is.”

“I just voiced everything you’ve been thinking, haven’t I? Every nagging thought that’s been racing through your head late at night? You know it’s true. He’ll find someone younger and better than you, and he’ll leave you. It won’t last, Alexandra. I’m trying to save you a heartache. He’s too good for you. You’re a Death Eater, and you always will be,” he reached for her arm and she tried to yank it away, but he held fast, turning it over to expose the Dark Mark. “This shows it. It will always be there, and you can never escape it.”

“I don’t want to hear your voice anymore. You disgust me!” tears of rage had welled in her eyes. “You don’t even know me anymore! You can’t try to tell me who I am!”

He exhaled. “Alexandra, all I’m trying to say is come back to the side where you belong. Or Matt and Salome will be killed.”

His words chilled the air like an icy wind.

“You’re despicable,” she said quietly. “You would kill your own daughter for power.”

“I would do what is necessary. The choice is yours, Alexandra. Her life rests in your hands.”

She slammed her hand down on the table. “That’s a lie and you know it! You’d harm her either way! You are a heartless man, Tom.”

“I’m not heartless, Alexandra. I love you.”

She stood up so quickly that her chair clattered to the floor behind her.

“You love me,” she repeated incredulously, her eyes flashing. “You LOVE me. That is a SICK and TWISTED LIE! You bring me here and lock me up like some sort of ANIMAL. You TEASE me and TAUNT me telling me that it’s all a metaphor, and that if I come back to your side, I can have everything I ever wanted. But THAT’S NOT TRUE! Because I would have to be with you! And that’s not what I want! You will hurt Matt and Salome no matter what I choose! That is not love. You would KILL our daughter. THAT is not love.”

Her voice was hoarse, tears were streaming down her cheeks, and her whole body was shaking.

“You don’t love me Tom. You love power. You love your idealized version of the world where you have power and you love the idea of me in it but you do not love me.”

She sat down and said softly, “You never have.”

Silence settled over the vast room like a blanket of snow.

“I would like to go back to my room now.”

“Which one do you choose, Alexandra?”

She looked into his eyes and saw the meaning behind his question.

“The dungeon.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading :) Please comment! Love you all <3


	9. The Rescue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The war is getting closer and action finally starts happening!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I almost made it to an entire month without posting! I have been having major problems with this fic- I had it all planned out at the beginning, but as I wrote, I started to realize how weak the plot was...so I've been sort of having to re-plan it as I go...ugh. I know there are plotholes- I tried to get rid of them, but they're going to be there anyway. Pay attention to what happens at the beginning...it will make sense later on...*evil laugh*

The morning after Alex disappeared, back at the Auror Camp

Matt awoke with a start.

“Matty! Matty! Please help me!” Salome was shaking him and sobbing. “Where’s my mum? I can’t find my mum!”  
He sat straight up, wide awake.

“Matty, I can’t find her,” Salome looked up at him with wide eyes. “Do you know where she is?”

His heart was now thundering in his chest. It was going to be okay. Nothing had happened, she probably just went for a walk or … went to go get food from the forest … his mind was running out of ideas. What if something bad had happened to her? After he had finally told her how he felt … this wasn’t supposed to happen. He had promised himself that he would do everything in his power to keep her safe … and now this. He ran a hand through his hair.

“Where have you looked, Poppet?”

Tears glistened in her eyes. “I’ve looked all around camp. I asked everyone if they had seen her and they said no. Matty, I don’t know what to do.”

“Hey, hey it’s okay, come here,” Matt pulled her small form to his chest. “We’ll find her, I promise.”

“It’s my fault,” Salome sniffled, her voice muffled against his shirt.

“What do you mean?” Matt asked gently, rubbing circles on her back. “How can it be your fault?”

She sniffed and looked up at him, tears spilling over the lids of her eyes. Her face was contorted in pain, and she was shaking.

“Are you alright?” he asked gently, concern in his eyes.

“Fine,” she said quickly, although she was still wincing. “I just- I need to tell you what happened.”

“Okay,” he said, keeping his arm around her. “Tell me, Poppet. I’m listening.”

"I-I couldn't sleep last night because there was this loud noise outside. I went to my mum and woke her up and she went out to go see what it was," Salome was sobbing now. "And I fell asleep while she was gone! I should have waited for her, Matty! Then maybe-"

She broke off into tears, and Matt held her tighter, gently smoothing her hair and rubbing his hand up and down her back. He was shocked by how natural it seemed, conforming her even while he was anything but calm himself. He had come to care so much for Salome, and he realized that if...when, not if he and Alex got through this, he wanted the three of them to be a family. More than he had ever wanted anything in his life, he wanted this. 

"It's alright, Poppet. It's not your fault. Don't blame yourself for this, okay?" 

He felt her nod against his chest. "Okay, Matty. But how do we find her?"

Matt sighed and ran a hand through his hair. "Let's talk to Hermione and Harry. They'll know what to do, yeah?"

"I already talked to them. They said they hadn't seen her."

"They might be able to help us come up with a plan to find her though, yeah?"

"Matty, what do you think happened to her?" Salome asked softly. "Do you think Voldemort took her? What if she's hurt? What if she's dying?" 

"Oh, sweetheart," Matt pulled her into a tight hug. "I'm sure your mum's just fine. We'll find her in no time, okay? Now let's go talk to Hermione and Harry." 

"Matty, one more thing," her voice was even quieter now. "What if my mum dies?"

"Salome-"

"No, please, Matty, just listen to me," she looked up at him and he saw the wisdom in her bright green eyes. She was mature beyond her years. "If she does die, what am I supposed to do? I have no one, no family. My dad obviously isn't an option, and I have no one else to go to. My aunts and my grandparents on my mom's side don't talk to us because mummy used to be a Death Eater, so I can't go to them either." 

"I would take care of you," he said firmly before he had even realized that the words were out of his mouth, but he realized he meant it with all of his heart. "You could stay with me. I promise."

"Really?" she whispered. "Pinkie-swear?"

Trying to hold back tears, he interlocked his finger with her much smaller one. 

"Thank you, Matty." 

He kissed the top of her head and they made their way out of the tent and into camp. 

They found Harry, Ron, and Hermione at one of the long tables in the dining hall speaking in low voices over The Daily Prophet and plates of untouched food, saying something about Death Eaters and Azkaban and the murder of a group of Muggles. They stopped talking abruptly as Matt and Salome approached. 

“Good morning,” Hermione greeted them.

“Good morning,” Matt replied, taking in their worried expressions and the newspapers on the table. “What’s going on?”

“There have been reports that numerous groups of Death Eaters have escaped from Azkaban Prison and have made several attacks on Muggles-humans,” Hermione quickly added at Matt’s confused look.

“That’s awful,” Salome said. “Isn’t that how the last wizarding war started?”

Hermione nodded solemnly. “Yes. Harry is going to send a group of aurors over to Hogwarts later this week to meet with the staff. We need to start getting organized if we have any chance of winning this war. If what Bellatrix did with the Dark Mark to summon all of the Death Eaters is any indication, they will have even greater numbers than last time. We need to be ready for them.”

“And as for what we’re dealing with right now,” Harry began. “Salome found us earlier this morning and said that she couldn’t find Alex. I gather that you haven’t seen her either?”

Matt shook his head, running his fingers through his hair.

“I looked all over camp,” Salome told them, her voice wavering with controlled panic. “She’s gone. I know it.”

“Calm down,” Hermione said, carefully meeting both of their eyes. “We need to asses the situation. When was the last time you saw her?”

“Last night,” Matt said. “When we went to bed. And then she wasn’t there in the morning.”

Matt then went on to explain what Salome had told him.

Hermione and Harry exchanged glances.

“Do you have any idea where she might be?” Matt asked impatiently. His heart felt like it was going to beat out of his chest. In the back of his mind, he had a pretty good idea of who she was with, even if he didn’t know where she was, but he insistently pushed the thought away.

“Well,” Harry said slowly, glancing at Salome briefly and then back up at Matt, silently questioning whether or not this was okay for her to hear.

“Salome,” Ron said. “Why don’t you come with me outside? We could play with the pygmy puffs!”

“No,” Salome said sharply, crossing her arms over her chest. “I’m tired of being sent away places while you guys talk about the important stuff. She’s my mum and I want to know what’s happening to her!”

“Salome, I will tell you what’s going on, it’s just that some of this might be too adult for you to take in.”

“I don’t want you to sugarcoat it anymore. I’m mature enough to handle the truth. Please let me stay,” she pleaded, and Matt looked into her eyes. She looked much older then, and he realized that she was growing up too fast. Much too fast.

“Alright,” he said quietly. Then he turned back to the trio.

“Well,” Harry began again. “We know who she’s with, most likely.”

Matt shook his head. “We don’t. She could be with anyone. She could have gotten lost in the forest, or-”

“Matt, if you don’t deny the obvious, things will be a lot easier,” Hermione interrupted, not unkindly, but with a matter-of-fact tone to her voice.

“Hermione, that was perhaps to blunt,” Harry said.

“No, no, you’re right,” Matt sighed. “But if she’s with him, where is she?”

“He could have taken her anywhere,” Hermione said. “But my first guess would be Malfoy Manor. That’s where we were taken during the Second Wizarding War.”

“We should look there first,” Harry added.

"We need some sort of plan," Hermione said. 

"We'll apparate to right outside of it," Harry began. 

They spent the next few minutes coming up with a plan of how to get in, and then got ready to go. 

"Matt," Hermione said hesitantly, "I really don't think you should come." 

"I know, I know that I can't do magic or anything, but I just can't stand the thought of her there and I need to," he sighed and paused, "I want to help in any way, to get her back."

"I know you do," Hermione said gently. "But we will get her out of there safely, if she really is at Malfoy Manor, and we will get her back to you. If you come with us, you will be putting yourself in danger unnecessarily."

The first thing Alex had made him promise echoed in his head. 

"You will not put yourself in danger for me. Enough people have died because of me, Matt. I don't need you to be one of them." 

He knew it was pointless to go. 

"You're right," he said finally. "I'll stay. Salome will stay with me."

"But I want to go, Matty!" she protested. "I have a wand. I can help you guys!"

"Absolutely not," Matt shook his head. "Your mother would not want you to. You'll stay here with me."

"We've fought Death Eaters before," Harry said when Salome still looked hesitant. "We can do it again."

"Okay," Salome said quietly. 

The rest of the week passed fairly quickly. Harry called a camp meeting and sent a group of Aurors over to Hogwarts to start assembling troops. Harry, Ron, and Hermione left at dusk for Malfoy Manor.

**********  
“Alohomora,” Hermione flicked her wand at the lock on the gate at the front of the ornate mansion. Nothing happened. 

“I knew it,” Hermione muttered.

The air was chilled and mist surrounded the trio as they huddled around the iron, ivy colored gate.

“There has to be another way in,” Harry hissed.

“Let’s go around the back,” said Ron.

They crept around the side of the mansion until they found a small door covered with ivy. Ron tried the handle, but it didn’t budge.

“I think this leads to the dungeons,” Harry said. “If Alex is here, this is probably where she is.”

“Alohomora,” Hermione aimed her wand at the lock, and it clicked.

“Odd,” Harry observed. 

“Maybe they figured no one would think to come in this way,” Ron said.

“Maybe,” Harry replied, and grabbed the handle. “Come on.”

They opened the door and entered a dark stone chamber.

“Lumos,” Harry said, his wand tip casting a glow around him.

“Harry?”

All three of them whipped around to look for the source of the voice. Hermione and Ron lit their wands and followed Harry as they walked across the room.

“Alex,” Harry breathed, relieved as the light from his wand fell on her form curled up in the corner.

“Oh my God, how on earth did you guys get in? I thought I heard a door open, but I never saw-”

“You can’t see it from the inside,” Harry cut her off. “We need to get you out of here before someone realizes we’re here. Are you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine.”

Hermione stepped forward and pulled her into a tight hug, and Alex hugged her back, smiling.

“Goodness, you’re freezing cold,” Hermione said as they broke apart, concern in her eyes. “Are you sure you’re alright?”

“I’m okay, I promise, but Bellatrix has my wand. I-I need to get it back somehow.”

“We’ll get you another one,” Harry said. “We just need to get out before-”

“Looking for this?” a taunting, all-too-familiar voice sing-songed.

They froze, and then slowly turned around. 

Bellatrix was standing in the other doorway to the chamber, Alex’s wand dangling from one of her hands and a smug grin on her face.

“Expelliarmus!” Harry yelled, and the wand flew out of Bellatrix’s grip and clattered to the floor.

“Accio,” Hermione said, and then handed the wand to Alex.

Bellatrix looked amused.

“Have it, darling. It doesn’t matter to me. Nice to see you again, Potter,” she smirked.

“What do you want, Bellatrix?” Harry spat.

“Well, I’m assuming that you three came here to take Alexandra back to your Auror camp,” Bellatrix said sweetly, “and I don’t intend to let that happen.”

They looked behind her through the door, and saw an endless sea of Death Eaters behind her.

“You knew we were here,” Harry said as realization dawned on them. “That’s why the door opened with the charm.”

“Yes! Very good, Potter,” Bellatrix said. “I have you right where I want you.”

She turned around to address the Death Eaters. “I need Alexandra alive, but do what you want with the rest of them.”

At her words, they burst into the chamber.

“Bombarda maxima!” Hermione shouted, pointing her wand at the wall behind them. It blew up in a cloud of flame and smoke, and they sprinted through it.

“Now what?” Alex cried as they tore through the outer grounds of the manor, the thundering feet of numerous Death Eaters right behind them, and the light of silent curses streaking past them into the night.

“We get off the grounds and then we disapparate!” Hermione said as she deflected a curse from behind her.

Even though Alex hadn’t used her wand seriously like this in years, it came back easily to her and it was almost as if she had never stopped.

Alex glanced over her shoulder and saw not only a sea of Death Eaters pouring out of Malfoy Manor, but Dementors flying above them.

“There are Dementors!” Alex yelled. “They’re right above us!”

They had nearly reached the edge of the land surrounding the manor.

“If we disapparate now, they’ll come with us,” Alex said, gasping as they finally made it over the border.

“Just do it,” Harry said firmly. “We need to get away from the Death Eaters. We’ll have to take care of the Dementors when we get back. We have to apparate to outside the camp anyway, and no one will be outside.”

The chill of the Dementors began to surround them.

They locked hands. “1...2...3,” and they vanished, the Dementors getting swept away with them.

As soon as they felt solid ground beneath their feet, they readied their wands. The Dementors were swirling around them closer and closer.

“Now!” Harry yelled.

“EXPECTO PATRONUM!” they cried in unison, and Harry’s stag, Hermione’s otter, Ron’s terrier, and Alex’s rabbit lit up the sky and shot the Dementors away from them.

They hurried into through the entrance to camp.

“Alex.”

She whipped around, and saw Matt running towards her, Salome in tow.

She leapt forward into his arms, and he hugged her tightly. She closed her eyes and buried her head in his chest, relishing in the familiar warmth and safety of his embrace.

“Matt…” she whispered.

“Oh, Alex, love, you had me so worried,” he pulled away slightly to cup her cheeks with his hands and look into her eyes. “Are you alright? What happened?”

“I’m fine, Matt, I’ll explain it all later, I promise,” she said, smiling as he kissed her gently.

“Mummy!”

“Darling,” Alex pulled Salome into her arms and kissed her hair.

“I’m sorry, Mum,” she whispered. “This is all because of the-”

“Shhh,” Alex said, putting her hands on her daughter’s shoulders. “It wasn’t your fault.”

“What happened out there?” Matt asked her. “What were those things?”

“Dementors,” Alex said. “They’re dark creatures that feed on your soul. They only way to get rid of them is to conjure a Patronus with your wand.”

“And the shimmery animal things were the Patronuses?” Matt asked.

Alex nodded.

“You guys all had different ones. Do you get to pick, or how does it work?”

“No, it just reflects something about you,” she explained.

“Oh, I understand now,” Matt grinned, trying to suppress a laugh.

Alex immediately understood what he found funny and rolled her eyes. “Oh, stop it.”

Harry, Ron, and Hermione exchanged confused looks.

“I don’t get it,” Harry said.

“It’s just … an inside joke,” Alex said quickly, as Matt started laughing out loud.

“Okay,” Harry smiled, and the sobered. “Look, Alex, we really need to talk about what happened, but I think we’re all too tired tonight. We’ll talk tomorrow, alright?”

“Alright,” she nodded, “and thank you for getting me out of there.”

“You’re welcome,” said Harry. “See you tomorrow.”

**********  
“I’m just so glad you’re alright,” Matt sighed as Alex got into bed next to him that night. She was wearing a t-shirt and yoga pants, her hair still damp from the shower.

She curled up against him and he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close.

“Alex … I don’t know what I’d do if I lost you,” he whispered, burying his face in her mass of curls and inhaling the scent of her vanilla shampoo.

“Oh, darling,” she murmured, reaching out to cup his cheek. She knew in her heart that there was a chance he would have to find out, but she didn’t say anything, not wanting to destroy the moment.

He leaned down to press kisses to her forehead, her eyelids, her nose, her cheeks, and her lips.

“Good night, my love,” he whispered, and held her tighter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Comment!


	10. The Questioning

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They try to figure out who is giving the Death Eaters information.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'M SO SORRY! I know all of my notes begin that way, but I really am. I've been having so much trouble finding the motivation to keep writing this. But it's almost done! This chapter is really short, but the next one will be longer. I'm almost done with it and I'll probably post it sometime around next Thursday or Friday.

The next day, Harry talked to Alex about what had happened with her, Bellatrix, and Voldemort, and she explained how she couldn’t remember the night Bellatrix took her very well. He then called a meeting of the whole camp and explained what had happened.

“The Death Eaters are getting stronger. A war is inevitable, and it will be coming soon. But what we need to focus on now is that someone must have given them information about where Alex was if they were able to find her here. And no one knows where we are, so it had to have been one of us. Or, more likely, one of them masquerading as one of us. We are going to spend the day questioning everyone to eliminate the possibility of Polyjuice Potion.”

“Poly-what?” Matt whispered.

Alex tried to stifle a laugh. “Polyjuice Potion, darling. You take it to make yourself look like someone else. There is the possibility that a Death Eater is here, disguised as an Auror.”

“No one is permitted to leave the camp boundaries until the culprit is found,” Harry continued. “Charms have been put on the borders to ensure that no one disobeys this order. Questioning will begin now.”

Everyone came out clean from the questioning. It had taken most of the day, and everyone was exhausted.

As the sun set, Alex, Harry, Hermione, Ron, and a few of the other head Aurors sat around a table to discuss what path to take next. Matt sat with Salome on the other side of the room. He tried to distract her with games on his phone, but she was only half interested.

“We have eliminated any chance of Polyjuice Potion,” Harry said. “The next thing to look at would be the Imperius Curse.”

“How would we check for that?” one of the other Auror inquired.

Harry sighed, running a hand through his hair. “That’s the problem. We’ll deal with it tomorrow. The main issue is that we need to move locations now that the Death Eaters know where we are.”

The others nodded.

“We will have to send forces to Hogwarts soon,” Harry continued. “I don’t know how much longer the Death Eaters will wait to attack. We’ll move locations tomorrow; 20 miles east and 30 miles north. And then there’s still the issue of your memories of the night you were taken, Alex. Can you tell us what you remember again?”

She sighed.

“Salome told me that she heard a noise outside and I went to go see what it was. I … I don’t really remember much after that. I think there was a cat? The last thing I remember is an old woman giving me tea and then she turned into Bellatrix.”

“Well, it could have been whatever was in the tea she gave you that made your memories fuzzy, but that wouldn’t explain why you went with a stranger in the middle of the night. I mean, you wouldn’t do that normally, right?”

Alex shook her head. “Of course not.”

“Are you sure that Salome was the only one who was with you?”

“Yes. Well, Matt was there too, but he was asleep.”

“This isn’t making sense. From what you’ve told me, it sounds like it could have been the Imperius Curse or the Confundus Charm. But if no one else was there, that doesn’t fit. Even if she wanted to, Salome isn’t an experienced enough witch to have put a curse on you like that. And you would have heard it being uttered unless it was a silent curse, and she wouldn’t be experienced enough to do that, either.”

Silence settled over the table as the information sunk in.

“Well, I guess we’ll talk more tomorrow,” Harry concluded.

The group at the table agreed and bid each other goodnight.

**********

“Sweetheart?” Alex said softly as she poked her head into Salome’s room of their tent later that night. Her daughter was hunched over writing furiously, her brow knit in concentration.

“What are you doing still up?”

Salome looked over at her mother. “Writing in my journal.”

Alex smiled. “Okay, but go to bed soon. You need to get some sleep.”

“Alright, mum. Goodnight.”

“Goodnight. Sleep well.”

Alex walked around the corner to where she and Matt slept. He was waiting for her, sitting on the bed.

“Hey,” he said, looking up at her as she walked over.

“Hey,” she sighed, sinking down on the bed next to him.

He put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close. She nestled her head into his chest.

“I just want this to be over,” she whispered.

“Oh, my love, I know. But it will be soon, right?”

“It could be over now,” she said, her voice barely audible.

She felt him tense. “What do you mean?” he asked shakily.

She looked up into his eyes. “You know what I mean.”

“Alex, please…”

“Remember what you promised me, Matt. If I choose to die, you can’t try and stop me. It’s wrong to let so many others die when if I wasn’t alive, Voldemort would become mortal and could be killed.”

“I love you, Alex,” he said softly, his voice thick with tears. “I love you so much. I don’t want you to leave me. Please don’t leave me…”

“Oh, darling,” she cupped his cheek in her hand. “I love you too. But you understand why I might have to do this, right?”

“Yes,” he whispered. “Yes, I do.”

He held onto her tightly, never wanting to let her go.

**********

Alex felt herself dozing off when she thought she heard the sound of flapping wings in the tent. Her eyes snapped open and she sat up, squinting to gaze around the darkened room.

“What is it, love?” Matt asked sleepily from beside her.”

Alex shook her head. “I thought I heard something. Must have just been my imagination.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! As usual, kudos and comments are much appreciated :D <3


	11. The Battle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The final battle! This is the last major chapter; the next two are the ending and the alternate ending.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So here is the last big chapter of this fic! Sorry it's so long; I couldn't find a good place to split it up. This has been a long road and I'd like to thank everyone who has commented, especially River_Melody_Pond who has been there since the beginning <3 I never would have made it to the end without you!

The next morning, Harry grimly announced to the camp that he had received an owl from Hogwarts that morning informing them that Death Eaters had attacked the school. The head Aurors immediately sent over a group, and everyone packed up and got ready to move to the new location. Alex held onto Matt’s and Salome’s hands as they disapparated, and she was reminded of the first time they had done that, back when they begun their journey to find Harry. How simple everything was then. There had been so much hope for things getting better. Now, it was inevitable that people were going to die because she was still alive. Guilt burned in her chest as they spun into nothingness once again.

No sooner had they began to set up their things at the new camp then another owl came from Hogwarts saying that the Death Eaters were completely overpowering their forces and they needed more help quickly.

“This is it,” Harry said. “We all go.”

A ripple of tension ran through the Aurors gathered around the heads of the camp. Everyone stood straighter and pulled out their wands.

Matt watched as Alex set her jaw and she pulled her wand out of her pocket in sync with the others.

“Can I come, Mummy?” Salome whispered.

“Not a chance,” Alex said. “You and Matt will stay here where it’s safe.”

Harry started to lead the large group outside.

“Alex,” Matt said softly, his eyes meeting hers with a pleading gaze. “Please don’t go with them.”

“I have to,” she said firmly, refusing to let herself get emotional. “It is my duty, Matt. My way to make up for what I have done wrong. You promised you would let me go and that is what has to happen.”

“Then let me go with you. Please. I-”

“No,” she cut him off. “I won’t let you. You can’t help me and you will only end up getting hurt.”

Tears were filling her eyes. She couldn’t help it.

“Remember what you promised me,” she continued, her voice thickening with tears. “That you wouldn’t put yourself in danger. You promised.”

The tears were falling freely now.

“I warned you. Oh, Matt, I warned you that you never should have gotten involved with me. Not with what was going to happen. Not with what’s happening now. I’m so sorry that I let this happen. It wasn’t fair to you…”

He silenced her with a kiss, his arms wrapping around her and holding her close to him.

“Stop,” he whispered. “Stop talking like that, my love. I wouldn’t change any of it. You have nothing to be sorry for. Absolutely nothing.”

“I love you,” she said quietly.

“I love you too,” he kissed her again.

She then turned to her daughter, hugging her tightly and whispering her love and her goodbyes.

“Alex,” Hermione said gently.

She turned around.

“It’s time to go.”

Alex nodded, turning back to Matt and Salome, trying to memorize their faces.

“I love you both,” she said. “So much.”

She couldn’t take it anymore; couldn’t look at them. Matt, her love, who she had drawn into this mess. He had said that he wouldn’t change it, but she still felt incredibly guilty about allowing him to fall for her when she knew that it couldn’t end well. And Salome, her little miracle. The only thing she was thankful for from her whole relationship with Tom. Who she loved more than anything in the world. 

She followed Hermione out of the tent to join the rest of the group who were getting ready to disapparate to Hogwarts. She was so lost in her thoughts that she hadn’t noticed how everyone was standing stock still.

Death Eaters were surrounding them.

She froze as Bellatrix started advancing towards her.

“Hello, Alexandra. Going somewhere?” Bellatrix flashed her trademark grin.

Hermione, who was still standing next to her, spoke up. “How did you know where we were?”

The thought hadn’t even occurred to Alex until then, with her thoughts wrapped around Salome and Matt. Harry said that the barriers had been put up around the camp; no one could have gone in or out. There was no way anyone could have gotten out and notified the Death Eaters about their change of location.

Bellatrix’s grin widened, as if she was ready to give away a big secret. “Salome, my darling. Come here.”

As if in slow motion, the curly haired child stepped into view from the invisible barriers of the camp.

“That’s a good girl. Come closer, now, so everyone can see you.”

Matt came out behind her, his eyes darting around, confused. He stepped over to stand beside Alex and Hermione. Alex stood completely still, her eyes locked on her daughter and her expression blank.

There was complete silence.

Bellatrix put a hand on Salome’s shoulder. “You’ve been a very big help to us. I don’t know what we would have done without you.”

“What’s going on?” Harry demanded.

Bellatrix fixed her amused look on him. “Isn’t it obvious? She’s the one who’s been giving us information this whole time. That’s how we knew where Alexandra was and how we knew that you moved locations. She sent us an owl. Owls can get through the barriers you have put up around the camp.”

The world moved in slow motion around Alex as everything started to fit together in her mind. Last night, Salome hadn’t been writing in her journal, she had been writing a letter. The flapping of wings she had heard had been Salome’s owl. But it still didn’t explain how hazy her memories were of the night when she found the cat in the forest, or why she had fallen into Bellatrix’s trap. Or why Salome would have done this.

The answer hit her at the same time Bellatrix spoke the words.

“She was imperiused.”

Another Death Eater stepped up beside Bellatrix, and Alex immediately recognized her as Salome’s Potions professor.

“My dear friend Myrtle Demue became a professor at Hogwarts last year. She brought Salome into her classroom under the pretense that they were to discuss an essay, but that was when she was imperiused. She was to act normally, except for sending mail by owl concerning the whereabouts of Alexandra and herself. And then of course she put the Confundus charm on Alexandra the night of her disappearance so that I could convince her to come with me.”

“Please,” Alex managed to choke out. “Please lift the curse. I’ll do anything.”

Bellatrix raised an eyebrow. “Anything? Really?”

Alex swallowed.

“Will you come with us to Hogwarts? Will you submit yourself to our Lord?”

“Yes,” Alex said quietly. She would get out of it. There was always a way out. “If you lift the curse, and Matt and Salome can stay here and won’t be harmed.”

“Then come forward, Alexandra.”

Alex walked over to her, feeling the burning gaze of everyone standing around her.

Myrtle lifted the curse on Salome. She blinked, looking around at everyone with a confused expression. Her eyes finally found her mother’s.

“Mum, what-”

“SILENCE!” Bellatrix screeched. Salome scurried over into her mother’s arms and Alex’s shoulders slumped in relief as she held her daughter close.

“Alexandra, I’m not sure that I should trust you,” Bellatrix said, tapping her wand against her chin. “I think you might try to get out of the little arrangement we made. So just in case-”

With a flick of her wand, Bellatrix had Matt and Salome standing in front of her and paralyzed.

“No!” Alex cried, lunging forward. Harry slowly walked around Hermione and over to behind where Bellatrix was standing. Hermione silently sucked in a breath and closed her eyes. All of the Death Eaters’ eyes were locked on Alex and Bellatrix, and no one saw Harry.

“Calm yourself, Alexandra,” Bellatrix said, pointing her wand at the pair. “Move any closer and they will be harmed. You will apparate to Hogwarts with us and surrender to our Lord. If you do not, we will kill them. Do you agree-”

“Avada Kedavra,” Harry said calmly, his wand pointed at Bellatrix. The green jet of light shot at her before she could block it, and her body hit the ground.

There was a moment of silence, and then everything erupted into chaos. Curses and light flew everywhere. Alex rushed over to Matt and Salome, and Harry, Hermione, and Ron dodged their way through the battle and over to them, and on Harry’s count, they disapparated to Hogwarts.

They apparated into a mess of fighting, and ducked their way out into a chamber to the side, and removed the Stunning Spell from Matt and Salome. No sooner had they done that then Death Eaters burst into the chamber and they were bombarded with curses. Harry, Hermione, and Ron immediately stood up and started fighting back while Alex threw herself in front of Matt and Salome to protect them. If anything happened to either one of them, she would never forgive herself.

Once they had made their way past the Death Eaters, they were thrown out into the hall again, amidst the battle. Out of the corner of her eye, Alex saw a student that couldn’t have been older than a third year get hit by a green stream of light and collapse to the ground. And that’s when it hit her. This couldn’t go on.

“That’s it,” she said, turning abruptly and starting down the staircase, the rest of the group right behind her. “No one else dies because of me.”

“Alex, what do you mean?” she heard Matt’s voice behind her but she ignored it and broke into a run at the bottom of the stairs and rushed outside. She checked behind her once to make sure that everyone was alright, and then continued on. She didn’t stop running until they reached a clearing in the forest far enough past the battle.

Then she slowly turned to address the group.

"I can't let this go on," she said. "My life is not worth the lives of this many. If I get rid of the Horcrux, Voldemort will become mortal and can be killed. Harry, you need to go find him now so you can kill him when..."

"Yes, of course," Harry said quickly. 

"And Hermione and Ron, you should follow him after."

They nodded. 

Harry stepped forward and hugged Alex tightly. 

"Thank you," he said as he let her go. "You have been a great help to us and I just want you to know that ... that you've made a difference, Alex. I know that you still feel guilty for what you did all those years ago, but you're making up for it now. You have no reason to feel that guilt anymore. We're ending this once and for all. And I- I'm so happy I was able to get to know you." 

"Thank you, Harry," she said as he turned and hurried off through the forest in the direction of the main castle. 

"Mum," Salome said, walking over to her mother. "I'm so sorry."

"Oh, sweetheart," Alex murmured, pulling her daughter close and stroking her hair. "It's not your fault. You weren't really the one doing those things."

"I remember all of it," Salome whispered. "And I remember not being able to do anything about it."

Alex held her tighter. "I love you so much. I'm so glad you're alright now."

"Mum, I understand why you're doing this. I just wish this could have turned out ... differently. I love you too. And I hope that someday I'll be as brave as you are."

Alex was trying her hardest not to cry, but it wasn't working anymore. 

"My darling," she said, finally pulling away and cupping her daughter's cheeks. "I have no doubt you will be." 

Alex hugged Hermione and Ron next, and then finally moved to Matt. 

Tears were glistening in his eyes. "My love," he said softly. "My dearest love."

"Matt," she whispered as he gently enfolded her in his arms. "I'm so sorry for everything, I never wanted to put you through all of-" 

"Shh," he cut her off with a finger to her lips. "Please don't. Alex, you have nothing to be sorry for. You think I regret falling in love with you but I don't. I don't regret it at all. You are the best thing that's ever happened to me. You and this little one here."

He looked over at Salome and smiled. 

"Alex, if this ... if this doesn't ..." he struggled to keep his tears at bay, "if this doesn't work, would it be alright with you if I took care of Salome?"

Alex looked up at him, struggling to keep her own emotions intact. "You ... you would do that?"

"Nothing would make me happier," he said sincerely. 

Salome joined their embrace and Alex held onto both of them as tightly as she could.

“Thank you,” she whispered to Matt. “That means the world to me.”

The three stayed holding each other for a moment longer, and then Alex finally pulled away.

“We can’t waste any more time,” Alex said quietly.

Matt nodded and gently led Salome away from her mother. Hermione and Ron backed away as well, clearing a space for Alex to stand.

She focused her gaze straight in front of her. She couldn’t look at them anymore. As she pulled out her wand, she finally felt at peace with herself. This was her sacrifice, her way of making up for what she had done.   
She pointed the wand at herself.

“Avada Kedavra.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Please don't hate me too much... :)


	12. Sad Ending

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The sad way of resolving the war

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! These two chapters I'm posting are the ending and the alternate ending. Just pick whichever one you want to read! Thank you again to everyone who has read, left kudos, and commented. You guys are all awesome <3

Matt saw everything happen in slow motion; the green flash of light, Alex collapsing to the ground, Salome’s tears, Hermione holding Salome back as she lunged forward towards her mother, and the silence that followed. He didn’t move for a moment, just stood completely still and stared at the motionless body of his love.

He didn’t realize he was crying until he felt wetness on his hands.

It seemed surreal- like a dream- as he walked over to Alex and knelt beside her.

He could feel that he was sobbing, but he wasn’t paying attention to his tears. He traced his thumb across her cheek.

“Alex,” he choked out. “Please … please don’t leave me.”

His tears rolled down his cheeks and splashed onto her face. He leaned down and wrapped his arms around her limp body and rested his head on her stomach, the sobs wracking his body.

“No,” he whispered. “Don’t go. Please don’t go. I love you so much. I can’t live without you. Oh, Alex, please don’t leave me …”

He broke off into heavy sobs again.

Ron put his hand on Matt’s shoulder and Hermione held Salome while she cried.

The sound of their mourning pierced through the stillness of the forest and into the night sky.

**********

“Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today…”

Matt didn’t even hear the words of the priest who was orating the funeral. He didn’t hear anything. He just stared straight into the trees surrounding the gathering and let the time pass by. The only thing he was aware of was Salome standing next to him. He had his arm around her and she was pressed close to his side.

The story they told everyone was that Alex was killed in a car accident. It was believable; no one questioned it. Matt felt sick lying to Karen and Arthur about what happened, but he had been sworn to secrecy about disclosing anything concerning the wizarding world. 

There were two funerals; one for humans and one for wizards. Of course, Matt attended both. It was now the second one for the wizards. There was a large crowd; by this time everyone had found out how Alex had sacrificed herself to save everyone from Voldemort. The plan had been successful and Harry was able to kill him. The tides changed in the war after that; without a leader, the Death Eaters quickly lost their strength. 

Matt was broken out of his trance when he felt Salome tugging on his shirt to get his attention. 

“Matty,” her eyes were full of tears and she was holding a white rose. “Can - can you come with me? I don’t want to go up there alone.”

He held her hand and they walked to the coffin. Together, they placed the rose on the surface and bowed their heads.

Hermione, Harry, and Ron all said wonderful things about Alex and her bravery and her heart. Matt tried his hardest to appreciate it, and to appreciate the effect she had had on everyone at the funeral. But his heart was too broken and he had cried all of his tears.

**********

Things got better, just as they always do. Salome was the only thing that kept Matt grounded over the next few years. She went back to Hogwarts, but visited him every chance she could. Matt returned to Doctor Who after taking a break, and then continued his acting career. He raised Salome and still kept in touch with Harry, Ron, and Hermione. After the war was over, Alex was seen as a hero in the wizarding world. Every year on the anniversary of her death and the end of the Third Wizarding War, there was a memorial for her. Salome and Matt always visited her grave the day before while it was still quiet, and left a single white rose.


	13. Happy Ending

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Happy way of resolving the war

Matt saw everything happen in slow motion; the green flash of light, Alex collapsing to the ground, Salome’s tears, Hermione holding Salome back as she lunged forward towards her mother, and the silence that followed. He didn’t move for a moment, just stood completely still and stared at the motionless body of his love.

He didn’t realize he was crying until he felt wetness on his hands.

It seemed surreal- like a dream- as he walked over to Alex and knelt beside her.

He could feel that he was sobbing, but he wasn’t paying attention to his tears. He traced his thumb across her cheek.

“Alex,” he choked out. “Please … please don’t leave me.”

After what felt like an eternity, her eyes slowly fluttered open.

“Matt,” she whispered.

His eyes widened. “Alex? Oh my god, Alex! You’re … you’re alive … you’re … “

By this time, Hermione, Ron, and Salome had joined Matt by Alex’s side.

“Mum!” Salome cried, throwing herself into her mother’s arms.

Alex hugged her tightly, sitting up so she was able to support her better. She then closed her eyes and buried her face in her daughter’s hair.

“So … it worked?” Alex asked a moment later as Salome pulled out of the embrace.

“I suppose it did,” Hermione said. “That’s how it worked for Harry. However, we can’t be certain until we see Voldemort.”

“Alex, your arm,” Matt said suddenly.

Alex looked confused for a moment. “My…”

She turned over her left arm and gasped. The Dark Mark was gone.

“I think that means it worked!” Hermione exclaimed. “Just like with Harry! The Horcrux was killed but you’re okay.”

Alex got to her feet and Matt embraced her tightly, crying into her shoulder.

“Thank god,” he whispered. “Oh, thank god, thank god you’re alright…”

“We need to go,” Hermione said. “We need to help Harry. Voldemort is now mortal, but we need to make sure he is defeated.”

Ron stayed with Matt and Salome in the forest to protect them, and Alex and Hermione hurried back to the school’s main building.

To their relief, they saw that the tides seemed to have turned and the Death Eaters were quickly losing the battle. They both kept their gaze trained straight ahead, not daring to look down at the floor incase they recognized a face from the dead.

They finally came to the main courtyard of the school. There was a large crowd gathered around Harry and Voldemort, and Voldemort was lying helplessly on the ground, looking weaker than they had ever seen him.

Hermione and Alex made their way through the crowd and into the circle where Harry stood over Voldemort. 

“Alex,” Harry said as the pair approached him. “Would you like to do the honors?”

She swallowed heavily. This was the man she used to love. Used to. This was the man that had killed countless numbers of the innocent, and had roped her into it before she found her way out and gotten her life back.

“Certainly,” she replied, her voice surprisingly calm and level.

She took out her wand, and Harry and Hermione stepped back into the crowd.

Alex walked toward the motionless figure curled up on the stone ground.

“Goodbye, Tom,” she said, and he opened his eyes and looked up at her. She felt no emotion whatsoever, and simply pointed the wand at him and uttered the same words she had said only moments earlier back in the forest.

**********

After the war ended, Alex and Matt returned to their normal lives. They moved into an apartment together near London, where Salome stayed with them in the summer when she wasn’t at Hogwarts. Hermione, Ron, and Harry were frequent visitors. Matt and Alex got married two years later and bought a house in the English countryside. After Doctor Who, they both continued their acting careers and were very successful, but still made time to be with each other and Salome. All was well.

**Author's Note:**

> I don't know when I'm going to be able to update again, but hopefully it won't be too long from now. Please comment and kudo and thank you so much for reading!! <3


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